The Unlucky Girl
by Snowflaked Angel
Summary: To get more money, Mikan becomes a secret bar singer. Everything in Mikan’s life has gone wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka? FULL SUM. INSIDE! Pairing: NM & RH. Warning: Family Conflicts. – Happy Ending :D – HIATUS
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

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To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_Chapter One: The Beginning▬_

Hi. My name is Mikan. Mikan Sakura. Everybody has a life story, and each fills up hundreds, even thousands of pages. Mine, you ask? Who knows? All I know is that my life is just so unfair. You can call me the unlucky girl. How many pages, exactly, does my unlucky life story fill up? As I said, I don't know. I'm writing it all up right now. Of course, I can't go into all the details… but my unlucky life has been interesting enough to write quite a story… let's start from the very beginning…

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"_Ohaiyo-gozaimasu_, class. Starting from today, I will be your English teacher." A man, seemingly in his twenties, smiled at the hoard of students staring at him. "My name is Seiji Sakura, but if you can call me Seiji-sensei, I'd be much obliged."

All the girls in the class were practically drooling, with hot-pink-colored hearts in their wide eyes. They couldn't be blamed. Seiji had really handsome features, and everything about him spelled "hot".

"How old are you?" A soon-to-be fan-girl screamed from one side of the room.

Seiji smiled kindly. "I'm turning twenty-two this year."

The fan-girls sighed happily. Most of the girls in the class were sixteen, and to them, the prospect of loving a twenty-two year old wasn't too bad. At least he wasn't thirty.

"So, today, I'd like to know all of your names before I start our lesson." Seiji pulled out a thin yellow folder out of his drawer, and held it up for the class to see. "Some like to call it _Attendance_, but I like to call it a way to learn all your names. So—"

Seiji was interrupted when the classroom door opened with a _bang_.

The whole class, including a curious Seiji, turned to the door and saw a girl with long, brown hair with two long pigtails panting, with one hand on the door, and the other on her books, barely keeping balance.

"What do we have here?" Seiji smiled as he walked over to the door. "Here." He took some of the girl's books and laid them on the front desk.

The girl finally looked up and beamed at him in thanks. Her eyes were a warm color of brown.

"No problem. What's your name?" Seiji lead the girl to the front of the room.

"_Ano… eto…_ _namae-ga?_ Yuka… Yuka Azumi." The girl suddenly bowed, her pigtails flying up, then flopping down onto her shoulders once more.

Seiji scanned the attendance list. "Yuka is a new student here, so you might not know her."

"She's cute!" Some boys in the back wolf-whistled. The whole class laughed happily.

Yuka blushed and suddenly seemed to find her black leather uniform shoes the most interesting thing in the world.

"Arigatou," she mumbled shyly.

"What's her Alice, Seiji-sensei?" one boy with blonde hair raised his hand.

"Hmm… it says here…" Seiji blinked. "Ah, it says that her Alice is a secret, so please don't ask her or anybody about it."

This, of course, made the class even _more_ curious. As Yuka shyly walked down the aisle, searching for a suitable seat, she felt everyone's stares at her. Finally, after walking that seemingly endless aisle, she chose a seat in the very back.

**Two Months Later…**

"You piece of trash!"

"You think you're so full of it, don't you?"

"Take _this_!"

"No, no, please, please, stop it!" Yuka screamed. She felt a sharp pain on her side, then, a split second later, an excruciating pain on her shoulder. One after another, the group of boys and girls that surrounded her hit her using the dangerous looking sticks they had.

Yuka could barely open her eyes.

_Why… why? Why did it have to turn out this way? I thought everyone accepted me…_

"Think you're so high and mighty, Azumi? The _Stealing Alice_," a girl spat. The beating suddenly stopped, and a girl that Yuka always secretly hated put her foot on her face and leaned on it, causing Yuka to wince and struggle.

"Please… Luna, stop it!" Yuka could barely choke the words out. Her face was definitely going to be permanently deformed if she didn't do something about Luna's foot.

Luna laughed, her beautiful face contorting into an ugly smirk.

_What should I do? What should I do?_ Yuka was panicking inside her head.

So, she did what she could do. She screamed. The high-pitched agonizing sounds probably would've traveled across the whole Academy if Luna didn't kick her jaw.

Yuka yelped and clutched her throbbing cheek, which was getting redder and redder by the moment. She stared at the looming figure staring down at her in hatred.

Suddenly, Yuka just snapped. She used her arms to lift herself up from the ground, and stared full-on into Luna's eyes. "You're going to _pay_."

"Yuka! Koizumi! Stop this _immediately_." A familiar, usually comforting, but now harsh voice called from behind them. Luna whipped around and quickly dropped her stick.

The stick dropped on Yuka's stomach, and she whimpered, too exhausted to even scream. She smiled weakly as she felt a warm, comforting hands wrap around her waist. After that, she felt a sudden wave of nausea and blacked out.

**One Year Later…**

"Seiji-sensei… I don't know how I should say this…" Yuka averted her eyes. "But… I love you." She did not dare look up. Yuka wasn't sure if she wanted to look about Seiji's reaction.

Suddenly, she felt a pair of strong arms hug her. Someone's chin rested in her hair and that certain someone whispered, "I love you too, Yuka."

Yuka closed her eyes and smiled, wishing with all her heart that time would stop and they—Seiji and herself—would stay like this for eternity. She knew of the consequences of their forbidden love… but it didn't matter anymore.

**Nine Months Later…**

"Yuka, it's final. You're EXPELLED." A white-haired man slammed his fist on his desk and swiveled his chair so that his back was facing the pale-faced student sitting in front of him.

"No… please… I'll do _anything!_ Please… give me a chance…" Yuka begged. When the principal did not react, Yuka broke down crying.

The principal's voice softened. "You can't change anything by crying, Yuka. I've always liked you… personally. But rules are rules; you _cannot_ have affairs with teachers. That is final."

Yuka fought to catch her breath between sobs. "It's not about having an _affair_, sir. Have you heard of it? It's called _love._"

The principal swiveled his chair once more so he faced the sobbing Yuka. "I think it's best for you to leave the school Yuka… you won't be accepted by your fellow classmates."

Yuka made a snorting sound, because she was trying to swallow her river of tears. "It doesn't matter! I don't have to be accepted, as long as I'm accepted by Seiji!" she cried.

The principal's eyes hardened and he clasped his hands together. "Sakura-sensei is also being fired at this moment," he said quietly.

Yuka suddenly stopped sobbing. Her eyes were as wide as saucers. "No… no… how can this _be_?" she screamed. "Expel me… please, just don't fire him!"

Yuka's sudden change of speech disturbed the principal greatly. "No… you both have to go. I think it's the best for you two. Once you leave the school, you can have your own lives."

The new prospect of a life, a life that did not need acceptance, or permission, tempted Yuka.

Putting past all her troubles, and _Luna_, she left, with Seiji, the next day. Yuka threw away all her education, all her friends, and all her love for the school at the young age of seventeen. Love controlled her mind and body. She couldn't fight against it.

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"Seiji! Seiji!" A nineteen year old girl skipped down the grand staircase of a beautiful mansion and ran to the huge front door. Pulling it open, she flung herself into her love's arms. The lucky man hugged her back, with love.

"What are you so excited about, Yuka?" Seiji asked, putting down his suitcase on the couch. He found another job, and the salary was decent. The Sakura's were already very wealthy, so they bought a grand mansion with beautiful furniture and décor.

"Seiji… I'm pregnant!" Yuka exclaimed. Her eyes were actually sparkling and twinkling. Any man would fall in love, she was usually beautiful, but at this moment, her beauty was equal to that of a goddess's.

"That's… great." Seiji smiled a little bit.

Yuka laughed. "_Of course_ it is, silly! How would it be bad?" Yuka teased. She pressed her cheek onto Seiji's strong chest and sighed dreamily.

"We'll be one happy family…" she whispered.

The two embraced for a while. They weren't married yet, but that didn't bother them. They promised each other that, even if they aren't ready now, they will marry later on.

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"Hey baby. I know you can hear me. You just can't talk and respond yet." Yuka giggled. She was sitting on the couch and talking to her now-quite-huge belly. "_Ano-ne_, Seiji has been a little distant lately… it's probably because he's afraid of being laid-off for his job. You know how his boss is always grumpy all the time. Well, actually, you _don't_ know, yet." Yuka sighed and resumed sitting in a comfortable position.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of a key turning and a door creaking open. "Seiji's back!" Yuka hoisted herself up from the couch and slowly, carefully walked down the stairs. She heard Seiji's deep and comforting voice, but then—

A young woman's voice. Flirtatious and dripping with honey.

Yuka almost lost her footing and tumbled down the stairs. She shook her head. _It must be a mistake… it's probably his coworker._

"Yuka!" Seiji's voice echoed throughout the mansion.

A trembling Yuka slowly walked down the stairs and approached the two. "Seiji… you're back," she whispered, glancing uncomfortably at the young woman constantly.

The young woman smirked. She had long black hair that was curled to perfection, her eyes were dark brown, and her profile was definitely more than adequate. She looked like a sultry prostitute.

"_A-ra_, look what we have here. Azumi-san, _desho_? Seiji has told me _so_ much about you," she hissed.

Yuka blinked. "O-oh, I'm sure he has…"

Seiji raised his palm to order silence. The three people stood there, facing each other; Yuka, looking scared and unsteady, the mysterious woman, haughty and confident, and Seiji, looking cold and emotionless.

"Yuka. This is Kurata Miyuki. She is my coworker." Seiji broke the silence.

Yuka exhaled slowly. _So she's only his coworker. That's a relief, _she thought.

"I just wanted to tell you… Miyuki and I…" Seiji trailed off and closed his eyes for a moment.

Yuka tilted her head to the right, wanting to know what Seiji will say next.

"We're going to get married."

Yuka's eyes opened wide, as wide as saucers. She put her hand on her heart, which throbbed so painfully… there was a hollow feeling inside her… something she could not describe with mere words. Yuka grabbed the balustrade to steady her now spinning world. Nausea came over her, just like when Luna beat her at Alice Academy. Just like the other time, she blacked out and felt her head bump on the hard-tile floor.

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A lonesome twenty-year old laid in a bed, listening to the sounds of a baby crying outside the room. Yuka was still living in the Sakura mansion because she had no where to go, and Seiji allowed her to stay, much to the dismay of Ms. Miyuki. Yuka remembered when she had to endure being Miyuki's bridesmaid during Seiji and Miyuki's wedding. After they got married, Miyuki treated her like a piece of shit. And Yuka felt like shit. It was a sad life, but Yuka long learned to accept her life's ups and downs. Her favorite quote was "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade".

Pushing the memories aside, Yuka's heart was currently pounded in anticipation. Yuka closed her eyes as she lifted the part of the blanket that covered the baby's face.

_Her_ baby's face.

Finally daring to look, she slowly opened her eyes and was immediately dazzled by the sight. The fragile-looking baby in her arms was so similar to herself. There were those warm chocolate-brown eyes, rosy cheeks, and long, dark lashes. The tuft of hair on her head was the same shade of brown as Yuka's. Yuka quickly checked the baby for any deformations, and found none. She sighed in relief and hugged the baby toward her chest. It was a miracle… she was finally a mother.

The mother of the most beautiful child in the world.

"I'll name you…" Yuka used her finger to gently touch her baby's nose, "I'll name you _Mikan_, as in tangerine Mikan, because my name means _Citrus_."

Mikan gurgled happily.

Yuka leaned back against her bedpost and looked up at the ceiling, clutching her precious Mikan to her body, and sighed.

**Two Months Later…**

"Oh no!" Yuka sprinted toward the kitchen and spotted the steaming pot on the stove. She hurriedly wiped her hands on her apron and lifted the cover of the pot. Steam rushed out, making Yuka blink.

She checked the bubbling, brown liquid inside, and then closed the cover once more. "Phew." She leaned against the refrigerator and put her hand on her sore back. Five days after she had Mikan, Yuka was ordered to work again. She served Miyuki day and night, sometimes only sleeping for two hours before being snatched up to do work again.

Yuka was so frustrated inside, but followed Miyuki's instructions. When she finally had a time to peacefully think by herself, Yuka contemplated whether to leave the mansion and have her own life. If she left, she wouldn't have to continue being Miyuki's servant, and Mikan would be safe from Miyuki's claws. But, if she left, she would probably never see Seiji again.

Seiji betrayed her, but Yuka still loved him with all her heart. Yuka prayed for Seiji to wake up and realize that she was better than Miyuki. Seiji was nice, far nicer than Miyuki, to Yuka and Mikan. In fact, he sometimes played with Mikan, like any father should. But he adored Miyuki far more.

_After all_, Yuka thought bitterly, _Miyuki is his official wife. I'm nothing to him anymore._

"YUKA! YUKA! YUKA!" Yuka suddenly heard Miyuki shrieking upstairs. She quickly turned off the stove and poured the brown contents into a bowl. Yuka opened the drawer, took out a silver spoon, and placed it delicately, along with the bowl, onto a pink tray. Grabbing a few napkins along the way, she took a deep breath and climbed the stairs, to Miyuki's room.

"Yes, Miyuki?" Yuka walked in calmly, placing the tray of medicine onto Miyuki's vanity desk, the only desk she had in the room.

"YUKA! Don't put it THERE! You bitch; you're doing it on purpose, aren't you?" Miyuki shrieked again, making Yuka almost drop the tray.

Yuka wanted to say, I'M _doing it on purpose? YOU'RE THE ONE THAT'S DOING IT ON PURPOSE! TEME _(You, in the meanest form)…

But, she swallowed that thought and replied, "No… I'm sorry, Miyuki." Yuka quickly picked up the tray and held it hesitantly. "Um… where should I put it?"

"Che. Just hold it." Miyuki rolled her eyes. She was still in her bed, dressed in flowery pajamas. The thought of Miyuki sleeping with Seiji everyday made Yuka cringe. Yuka averted her eyes from the bed and held out the tray to Miyuki. "This is some medicine to help you heal from giving birth."

Miyuki took the bowl and spoon and took a sip. Her face immediately scrunched up like a bulldog, and she screamed, "WHAT THE HELL is this? This is POISON! HELP! SHE'S TRYING TO POISON ME! HELP!"

Yuka widened her eyes in disbelief and quickly ran to the bed, trying to tell Miyuki that it wasn't poison. But before she reached the bed, she caught a glance of a white bowl being thrown her way. Yuka immediately dodged to the side, and heard a crash.

Suddenly, a baby started crying.

"Miyuki. Why did you throw that at me? Do you know that can _burn _someone?" Yuka hurriedly attended to the broken bowl, and, in horror, realized some of the hot liquid touched the baby in the crib.

"_Hotaru!_ HOTARU!" Miyuki flung herself out of bed and shoved Yuka aside. She reached into the crib and comforted the screaming Hotaru. Luckily, most of the liquid stained the blankets, but did not reach the baby herself. Still, the baby was in obvious shock.

Yuka scooped up the broken shards of the bowl on the ground, cutting herself on accident. Yuka winced, but didn't make a noise. After disposing the bowl, she turned hesitantly to Miyuki, who was screaming at her. No surprise.

"YUKA! Look what you did! You're beyond evil! You bi—" Miyuki stabbed her finger in the air and pointed it accusingly at Yuka.

"What's going on?" A deep voice suddenly growled. Yuka and Miyuki quickly turned to Seiji, who just appeared by the door.

"Seiji!" Miyuki, holding Hotaru in her arms, ran over to Seiji and started crying. "Yuka… Yuka… I told her I didn't want to eat the medicine at the time, since I'm so _frail_, so she threw the bowl of _hot liquid_ at Hotaru! Look!" Miyuki showed Seiji the stained blankets that Hotaru was wrapped around.

Seiji's eyes flashed in anger. "Yuka. Why did you do this?"

Miyuki glared at Yuka evilly.

Yuka looked like she was about to cry. So many thoughts were going across her head. She wanted to tell Seiji the truth, but these situations happened before, and Seiji never believed her, not even once.

"I… I didn't do it on purpose," was all Yuka could mumble.

Seiji widened his eyes. "I _never_ thought you were the type to do this. SATOU! SATOU!" Seiji bellowed for the butler.

Satou appeared at the doorway. "Yes, Seiji-dono?"

Seiji's whole body shook in anger. "Go get my horse whip."

Satou looked frightened. He glanced back and forth from the smirking Miyuki, to the frightened Yuka, and back to the furious Seiji. "Y-yes. At once."

Moments later, he appeared with Seiji's horse whip. Seiji snatched it away from his hands and faced Yuka. "You'll learn what happens if you mess with _my _children," he growled as his whip lashed out.

"AH!" Yuka screamed as the whip connected to her cheek. The stinging, burning, and painful sensation was one Yuka would never forget her entire life. More lashes kept coming, and all she could do was writhe and scream. Seiji kept coming at her, and through her blurred vision, due to her tears, Yuka could see Miyuki's smirk, and Hotaru still screaming.

If Yuka could predict the future, she would have _never_ made medicine for Miyuki… but it was too late now. Hotaru was one month younger than Mikan, and Hotaru was Miyuki's baby. Seiji believed Miyuki. He loved Miyuki more than he loved Yuka. That was a clear fact that couldn't be changed.

It was the most painful three minutes of Yuka's life. Even more painful than Luna's beatings, because the one that was whipping her was the one that she loved, and still loves. When the whipping stopped, Yuka found that she couldn't move. Tears streamed down her face and her whole body burned as if on fire.

She heard Seiji exhale. "GET OUT AND NEVER COME BACK AGAIN!" he yelled as he dropped the whip on the ground and stormed out of the room, with Miyuki trailing behind.

Yuka, with pain and difficulty, finally got to her feet. She didn't dare look in the mirror. Nothing could describe what shame she felt now. She shuffled toward her small, cramped room and packed Mikan's things. Yuka, herself, didn't have much that she brought. Everyday, she wore the same maid uniform that she washed everyday. In the morning when she woke up, the uniform was usually wet, but she still wore it. Yuka had no precious things, no jewelry, no photos. Just Mikan.

That night, when no one was looking, she slammed the front door and ran out. The only piece of clothing was the one she had on, and that was ripped and wrinkled. But there was no way Yuka was going to go back.

She hated the place, and hated Miyuki, but she still loved Seiji.

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Yuka Azumi had no relatives that wanted to take her in. In fact, the only relative that she had was her father, who shunned her when she was expelled. Like she said, she threw away everything she had for love. And look what love did to her.

She had no money on her, so, clutching Mikan tightly to her chest to warm her, she wandered around the streets. People started and pointed at her tattered clothes and blotchy, red face that had a whip marking on her cheek. Children laughed at her. When she sat down on the sidewalk, some people even threw money at her. They thought Yuka was a beggar!

_But… maybe I really am a beggar? I have no money. I have no job. I have no family, or home. I just have Mikan. _

She accepted the money with grace, and quickly bought some cheap food for Mikan to eat. Mikan was only two months old, and couldn't eat regular things that adults ate because her teeth haven't finished developing yet, so Yuka chewed the food first and then spit it out for Mikan to eat. Yuka didn't eat anything, and gave it all to Mikan.

This went on for three days, and miraculously, Yuka survived without food, just water, for those previous two days. But on the third day, it was clear she couldn't go on without food. Using the last of the money they begged for, Yuka bought a sandwich and ate it hungrily.

Now that she was half-full, she realized that no matter what, this had to stop. She needed a job.

Carrying Mikan, she wandered around the town, asking for a job. She wandered farther and farther away from the mansion, and soon, she found herself in a busy city with a lot of bars and clubs.

On the fifth day, she was hired to be a waitress at a local restaurant. Yuka finally had a job.

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Being a waitress was no easy job. With no house to live in, Yuka could only bring Mikan to work with her. Mikan cried and cried and Yuka couldn't do anything about it except grit her teeth and continue doing her job. Yuka offered to do dishes and clean up in addition to being a waitress, for more money.

Through the thick and thin, one and a half months later, Yuka finally rented a dilapidated shack that could be lived in. It was a small wooden house, ridiculous in size compared to the other mansions surrounding the area. The owner told Yuka that this was where the servants of a mansion lived in.

Her closest friend that she met at her job offered to take Mikan in their house while Yuka was at work. They also had another baby, and they hired a babysitter to care for their baby, as well as Mikan. Yuka thanked her and accepted the offer.

This cycle continued for three years, until one day Yuka collapsed at work. Hence, she broke all the dishes she was carrying and splattered the food all over her customers and the floor. She was immediately sent to the hospital. The doctors said that Yuka collapsed because she did not meet her nutrition needs of her over-worked body.

The next day, Yuka went back to work, but before she got to change into her waitress uniform, the boss came out and fired her.

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"Mama!" Five-year old Mikan wobbled out and spread her arms out. She was the cutest thing on earth, from Yuka's prospective. Yuka smiled and scooped up little Mikan into her arms.

"_Ne_, Mama! Why do we live here?" Mikan said, looking confused.

"Because this is our home, Mikan."

"_Demo_… why don't we live _there_?" Mikan pointed her little pointer finger to the big mansion next door.

Yuka's eyes watered and she clutched Mikan close to her. "It's… it's because we just can't."

"_Demo_—" Mikan started again, but Yuka cut her off.

"_Ne_, Mikan? I'm going to go out for a bit, okay? Be a good girl and don't go anywhere!" Yuka parted the curtains that served as their door.

Mikan blinked and smiled. "_Hai, _Mama!"

Yuka smiled a bit and then walked out.

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"Mama! It's ugly, ugly!" A voice shrieked. Yuka closed the front door silently. She entered the grand living room with a huge chandelier dangling from the ceiling.

"Oh. Look who's here again," Miyuki appeared. "Hotaru! Don't get too close to the outsider. Same goes for you, Youichi!"

A raven-haired five-year old looked up at her mother, Miyuki, then silently walked to her. four-year old Youichi poked Yuka, smirked, then sprinted away before Yuka could do anything. Yuka spotted two-year old Sumire laughing and shrieking "_Bu-sai! _Ugly!" over and over again.

Miyuki took one look at Yuka's dirty shoes and shrieked. "Look what you did to my new carpet!"

Yuka blinked and looked down at the muddy footprints.

"Miyuki. You know what I'm here for," Yuka said emotionlessly, ignoring the dirt.

Miyuki snorted. "Tch. Seiji! _She _came again," she called.

Heavy footsteps echoed throughout the grand living room as Seiji stepped down the stairs. He eyed Yuka's simple clothes and pale face. "Oh, Yuka, you've come."

Yuka looked down at the ground. "Yes."

"Satou. Bring the envelope," Seiji ordered.

"Yes, Seiji-sama." Satou bowed and hurried to Seiji's office.

"How's Mikan?" Seiji asked, sitting down on the leather couch.

Yuka stood still. She knew she was not welcome to sit wherever she liked. "She's fine."

"Ah." Seiji looked to the side. "SATOU!"

"_Hai, hai_… here it is." Satou came tumbling down the stairs, clutching a simple white envelope. Satou handed it to Seiji immediately, who offered it to Yuka.

"Here's the money. Take it and buy some new clothes for Mikan," Seiji said, pushing the envelope toward Yuka.

Yuka took it and gently lifted the flap. Inside was fifty dollars. She sighed. "Seiji…"

"What? Not satisfied?" Miyuki's voice shouted from the other side of the room. The sounds of expensive bracelets jingling together meant that she was coming near. "Seiji! Our family needs all the money, why are you giving it to them?"

Yuka wanted to scream in Miyuki's face. Fifty dollars? Pah! Fifty dollars wasn't enough. In truth, Mikan got sick a couple months ago and the hospital bill wasn't paid yet! They needed to buy food, new clothes, pay bills, and much, much more. They needed one hundred dollars, at least.

"I…" Yuka caught Miyuki's death glare. "I'll take my leave now." Yuka didn't dare speak up, she was too kind-hearted. With her head down, she trudged to the front door and slowly walked outside, feeling dejected and lonelier than ever.

Ever since she was fired from her waitress job two years ago, every month or so she paid visits to the happy Sakura family, to ask for money. She hated it; she hated the feeling of being in debt to someone, especially the Sakura's. But she had to do it, for her precious child, for Mikan.

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I remember the day as if it were yesterday. I was a healthy thirteen-year old girl, with brunette hair, chocolate brown eyes, and a nice figure. My long brown hair was usually put up in two stiff braids. I went to public school, did all my homework, and got good grades. I lived with my mom, and no one else. I loved my mom even more than I loved myself. She was always there for me, and I knew she would sacrifice herself for me, as I would for her. I didn't have a father, or any siblings that I knew of. It was just my mom and me.

I didn't have many friends, because I never invited anyone to my house. It wasn't that I was socially retarded; it was just that, it seemed to my "friends" that if you didn't go to each other's houses, then you weren't true friends. I never brought anyone to my house because it wasn't the best sight.

Ever since I could remember, we lived in that wooden shack.

Ever since I could remember, I wondered why we lived in this shack, and why my friends lived in the big, pretty houses.

Ever since I could remember, I wanted to live in one of the big houses that were next door to us.

Pushing the house problem aside, I was liked by my classmates, but nobody approached me. After a little investigating from their part, they found out I was poor and where I lived.

One day, while I was doing my homework, I heard someone knock on our "door", which consisted of a couple of wooden boards tacked in front of a huge gap in one of the walls. I knew my mother came back from wherever she always went every month. I took a peek through the small hole. Yes, it was my mom.

I pushed open the wooden boards and greeted my mother. Even though it was a hot day, my mom was wearing her jacket and her arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

"Mom! Aren't you hot?" I immediately reached to take off her jacket.

She flinched and inched away from me. "I'm okay, Mikan, I'm okay."

This was weird. "Mom… are you keeping something from me?" I asked.

She didn't answer.

"Mom!"

Silence.

"Mom!" My mom _never_ kept things from me, ever!

"Mikan… I… I guess it's time to tell you." She made a move to sit on the ground, since we didn't have any chairs, but suddenly, she yelped and fell to the floor.

"Mom! Are you _hurt_?" I took off her jacket and gasped.

Mom was covered in blue, purple, and black, angry bruises. I mentally punched myself for not noticing mom's cut lip earlier.

"What happened? Tell me, please!" I begged her as I immediately took a towel and soaked it in hot water.

"I'll tell you… I'm going to lie on the bed…" Mom slowly got up and walked toward the bedroom, one of the two rooms we had in our house.

"I'll be there in a sec!" I wrung the towel and hurried toward our bedroom.

"Mikan… I went to see your father today," she blurted suddenly.

I dropped the towel on the floor. "W-what?"

"I saw your father today. I went to see him."

"My… father? Wha…" I suddenly had a thought. "Wait, have you been seeing him every month? Is _that_ were you went every month?"

Mom nodded sadly. "I'm sorry for not telling you… I'll tell you everything now."

I sat myself next to mom on her bed.

My mother, Yuka, took a deep breath and began the story.

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_Thanks for reading the first chapter of The Unlucky Girl. This is a new fanfiction that just popped up into my head, so I want to know what my readers think of it. Most of the chapter wasn't focused on Mikan, the main character of the story. Moreover, Natsume wasn't even introduced yet! My goal is to make him appear in the next chapter. Another note: despite the mention of Yuka's Stealing Alice in the beginning of the chapter, I think I won't have them have Alices in this fanfiction. _

_Special thanks to my beta-reader/editor: xSTICKYxNOTEx/Gemma-chan. She's the one that makes this story the best as it can be, so please give a round of applause to her, not just me._

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks or so, because I have to update my other story: __The Living Dead__ as well as this one. Thanks to my supporters of __The Living Dead__ that anticipated this story and supported it even before the first chapter was out! I reply to all of my reviews, so if you have any questions, please note them in your review. _

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message and I'll definitely be glad. :)_

-- Mikarin/VanillaCottonCandy

_**Editor's Note: **__Usually, when I get a chapter from Geena-chan, there's almost nothing to fix. I'm not making the story the best it can be, I'm just making sure it's good, and it always is! If you agree, be sure to review! -- Sticky Note _


	2. Chapter 2: Polka Dotted Date

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

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To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_**Previously:**_

"_Mikan… I went to see your father today," she blurted suddenly._

_I dropped the towel on the floor. "W-what?"_

"_I saw your father today. I went to see him."_

"_My… father? Wha…" I suddenly had a thought. "Wait, have you been seeing him every month? Is that were you went every month?"_

_Mom nodded sadly. "I'm sorry for not telling you… I'll tell you everything now."_

_I sat myself next to mom on her bed._

_My mother, Yuka, took a deep breath and began the story._

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▬_Chapter Two: Polka-Dotted Date▬_

And that's how I came to know the tragic story of my mother. Well, technically, _my _tragic story as well. It turned out she went to father's house to ask for money every month. That time, she finally spoke up and told him it was not enough for them, and she got hit and beaten.

After listening to her story, I felt my whole body burn with rage I never thought I could have. Rage for Miyuki, for my father, for all of Miyuki's children, Hotaru, Youichi, and Sumire, for all of them.

Two months after my mother was beaten, she brought me to the Sakura mansion. I marveled at the huge house that had a huge garden, in addition to a gigantic swimming pool, tennis court, and mini-golf course. They even had a spectacular lake view. I felt so envious. All that should've been _my mother's_! Not Miyuki's!

I watched my mother ring the doorbell with trembling hands. A maid opened up and immediately, her eyes softened at the sight of my mom. Even the _maids_ pitied my mother! What a shame!

The maid brought us inside in silence, then called for Seiji. Of course, Miyuki appeared before he did and her eyes narrowed at me.

I lifted my chin up and gave her a challenging glare.

"Oh? And who is _this_?" Miyuki said coldly.

Yuka bit her bottom lip. "Um, Miyuki, I don't know if you remember—"

Miyuki interrupted rudely. "I hope this isn't some runt you made with another homeless man."

I balled my fists and walked slowly to her, ready to punch Miyuki's lights out.

Miyuki smirked as if to say, '_Let's see you try, you homeless runt.'_

Seiji, who was looking down at us from upstairs the whole time, immediately said, "Stop!"

I looked up to see who had such a deep, commanding voice and my eyes widened.

Seiji took slow steps down the stairs with purpose. When he reached the bottom of the spiral stairs, he faced Miyuki and me.

"Mikan." My eyes widened as Seiji said my name. He _knew_ my name? He continued, "I shall not permit you to attack my wife, at any means."

My eyes hardened. He stands up for Miyuki? After all that he saw? What a coward.

Seiji turned to Miyuki, who stared back in defiance.

A second later, a loud _slap_ was heard.

I flinched, and closed my eyes at the same time. When I opened them, I saw a miracle. Miyuki's hands were covering her left cheek, and she was whimpering like a homeless dog! My mom's eyes were wide as saucers and her hand was pressed to her mouth, while glancing back and forth, from Seiji, to Miyuki, then back again.

Miyuki slowly removed her hands from her cheek, and I saw, to my pleasure, saw a big blotch of angry red.

"Seiji… I'm sorry… I shouldn't have come…" Mom was whispering, her eyes on the expensive wooden floor.

I looked at Mom with sad eyes, and held her hand with both of my own. Seiji cleared his throat and rumbled, "No. You are always welcome, Yuka. I just needed to teach Miyuki a lesson just in case she decides to talk to my daughter like that again."

Miyuki's pupils dilated in shock as she stared at me, then to Mom, then to Seiji. I couldn't hold my smile anymore, so I let it show. Mom immediately squeezed my hand to say, _stop smiling!_ So I immediately turned back to my solemn expression, but I knew my eyes flickered with amusement.

"_Doushtano,_" said a soft voice from upstairs. It echoed throughout the living room, and we could all hear that even though the sentence was a question, it was clearly not expressed so.

I lifted my head and my eyes immediately laid on a beautiful, elegant, black-haired girl with amethyst-colored eyes that you could drown in. Her face expressed no emotion, even after looking at the dramatic scene. Her straight, raven-colored hair almost reached her waist, and was currently let down, but adorned with hairclips to keep her hair out of her flawless, glowing face. She wasn't tan, but certainly wasn't pale; her skin had a natural soft, glowing look to it. From her neck, there hanged a pendant necklace that had a star on it. She was wearing a JS Boutique dress.

I looked closer, and saw that the dress she was wearing was red satin. The dress was square-necked and had cap sleeves with an open V-cutout in the back, revealing a lot of her smooth skin. The fishtail hem completed the look. Her feet were in light-pink silk slippers. She wore absolutely no make-up, yet was still as beautiful as ever. It wasn't fair!

"Oh, Hotaru." Seiji took a deep breath and exhaled. "Come down and meet your half-sister."

Her big amethyst eyes were closed, her thick, black eyelashes resting on her face, as she thought about it. Then, she made up her mind and elegantly descended down the stairs, taking dainty steps. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she seemed to take in… _me_.

Her eyes flitted over my dirty sandals that were the color of straw, my faded, a-little-too-big red shorts, and my roomy plain, white T-shirt. My hair was still in my usual two stiff braids.

I glared at her as she closed her eyes again. I knew that she wanted to erase such a _mortifying_ image from her head. She opened her eyes and slowly extended her hand to me. An avalanche of bracelets came rushing down her arm, and down to her thin wrist. I couldn't help staring at the beautiful bracelets that she had on. There were only gold and silver colors, the others were too good to be hanging on her wrist. One of her bracelets included a Charriol Diamond Bangle Bracelet. It looked like it was eighteen karat gold and diamonds.

The only bracelet I had was a handmade on from those "Do-It-Yourself" kits that I got for my birthday. It was the only birthday present I got that year. I came to my senses as she shifted her body a little, still waiting for my hand.

I reluctantly lifted my hand and grasped hers tightly as I shook with sincerity. I caught sight of a Carriere Swirl Ring that looked really expensive. She seemed to think it was _too much_, so she immediately let go of my hand and stepped back, probably wondering what was wrong with me.

There was nothing wrong with me. Just wrong with her. Her family. Her _whole_ family. Seiji cleared his throat, again. He seemed to like doing that, when demanding for attention. "Mikan, I'd also like you to meet my son, Youichi, and my other daughter, Sumire."

I didn't notice those two kids slip downstairs.

The boy had his hands stuffed in the pockets of his black, crisp pants. He was wearing formal, just like Seiji, but his silver vest was missing and his shirt was unbuttoned on the top. His tie was tied, but very loosely. He wasn't wearing any shoes, only black socks, in opposition to the other family members.

Seiji narrowed his eyes. "Put on your black leather shoes or slippers, Youichi."

Youichi shrugged it off.

I shifted my eyes to the little girl that was playing with her silky black hair, her emerald green eyes darting from one place to another. Even though she wasn't outside, she was wearing a white straw hat that had a sailor brim trimmed with burnt Coque feathers. Both of her ring fingers were adorned with a ring and she wore a sparkling heart pendant necklace. Her earrings were diamond studs. The girl was also wearing a Betsey Johnson sequin dress with a pink taffeta sash that cinched the dress. It was covered with iridescent sequins and had a ruffled hem.

Somehow, this adult party dress was specially turned into a kids dress for her. I had to admit, however much that I didn't want to, she looked cute. The pink sash really did the trick. Under the chandelier's light, she gleamed and sparkled.

I turned toward them, first toward a bored-looking, silver-haired boy. He was the same height as me, even though he looked a little younger. He rolled his eyes as he stuck out his hand. I grabbed it and shook it tightly. He glared at me, then squeezed even harder. I immediately let go of his hand and turned to the smallest girl with a slight perm on some strands of her black hair. She twirled her hair around her index finger once, twice, thrice…

I fake-coughed. That seemed to do the trick. She stopped, then side-glanced at me. She immediately looked away, with a _humph_, totally ignoring me. This brat was making things harder on purpose, wasn't she?

"_Su-mi-re_." Seiji enunciated each syllable clearly and with force. Obviously, this little brat had a spoiled reputation. Sumire stopped twirling her hair and pouted. "But I don't want to shake it! It's ugly!"

My mother's eyes blazed with anger. I suddenly remembered that mom told me that each time she entered the Sakura mansion, Sumire would scream: "It's ugly! It's ugly!"

I thought it was time for me to teach this brat a lesson. I walked up to her and glared down at her. After all, she was a good deal shorter than me. "Are you going to shake my hand, _you spoiled brat_?" I hissed the last three words of my sentence in her ear, so nobody heard but Sumire. Her eyes widened and mouth dropped open. It was obvious that nobody talked to the little princess like that before.

She furrowed her brow and blinked in annoyance. Finally, she raised her arm and looked away from me. The gesture looked like a spoiled girl that wanted a kiss on the hand from her push-over boyfriend. I took her hand, but yanked it toward me, so she faced me.

"That's better!" I exclaimed with fake-cheeriness.

I shook her hand, hard, then let go, walking back to Mom's side. Seiji was smiling, obviously oblivious to what was going on, and Miyuki was seething. My mother was emotionless, but her face also showed signs of worry that nobody could read except for me because I knew her so well.

"You can all go upstairs now. _Including you, Miyuki_." Seiji's tone was warning, his smile fading fast.

They all trudged upstairs, but Hotaru stopped when her fingers wrapped around the balustrade. She tapped her red-painted nails on the grand stair railing. Her thumbs also had a white flower painted on top of the red. Hotaru stopped tapping, then turned to face me again.

"_Maa, _it was nice meeting you, I guess," Hotaru said before climbing up the stairs again.

I blinked in confusion, but then shook it off.

"Anyway," Seiji turned to me, "you've grown, Mikan."

Then, my father hugged me.

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"_Douda, _Mikan?" Mom asked as we entered our old house again.

I helped push away the wooden boards as I replied. "It was okay."

Mom smiled a little bit. "_Souka_. That's good."

We walked in our house in silence. Mom got an old pot and started boiling water. A thought came to her. "Did your dad… give you any money?" she asked in a pained voice.

I suddenly remembered the bulge in my pocket. "Oh, yeah… right." I handed the white envelope to Mom.

She took it with trembling hands and clutched it to her heart while closing her eyes.

"Can I… open it?" I asked, reaching out my hand. She gave it to me and I slowly lifted the flap.

I took out the green inside and counted the ten dollar bills. One, two, three, four, five, six…

Inside was two hundred dollars. My mouth dropped open as I touched the money, afraid to ruin, to destroy it.

"How much?" Mom asked.

"Two hundred… dollars."

Her eyes bulged as she raised her head to the heavens, murmuring a silent prayer. When she opened her eyes, they were full of sparkling tears.

"Don't cry, Mom!" I ran over to her and hugged her.

"Did your father finally open his eyes?" Yuka smiled as she hugged me back, tighter.

"_Wakaranai… demo…_" I smiled a bit too, remembering the feeling when he hugged me, how warm it felt, and how good it felt.

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I closed the door to our house. Yes, we actually had a door now. After receiving father's two hundred dollars, we paid off the remaining outstanding bills, got an actual door to replace the wooden boards, and changed a few other things to make our lives a little easier. After that, I got a part-time baby-sitting job for a couple of kids, so I earned a little bit of money to pay for our food. Along with father's monthly sixty dollars (yes, it increased from fifty to sixty), we were doing fine.

That is, until Mom got terribly sick.

I didn't notice it until mom collapsed when she was making noodles one day. I rushed her to the bed and checked her temperature. It was frighteningly high. I hurried out to buy some medicine and dipped rags in cool water to place on her forehead. I did the best I could do, and it paid off. Mom didn't have to go to the expensive hospital. Her fever went down just a little bit, but she opened her eyes and started eating and talking again.

I was too careless one day, when Mom said she was fine already. She stood up and made her way to the kitchen, saying how it was a week ago that she made meals for me, and she missed the chance. I smiled and told her that I was going to go to the grocery store to buy things.

She nodded and said, _"Itarashai!_" as usual. However, when I came back, I found Mom heaving on all fours, coughing out blood on the floor. The water was boiling and bubbling, hot water and steam rushed out of the pot and onto the stove, dripping onto the floor and onto Mom. I screamed as I dropped my bag of groceries and immediately turned off the stove and lifted the cover of the pot.

I carried mom, who was still coughing, to the bed and checked her temperature. She was running a high fever again, but this time, it was worse. She had a deadly cough and could barely choke out words.

I told her to sleep and don't worry… that I would take care of her until the day I died.

It was a promise never to be broken.

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My sandal-clad foot stepped into the grand mansion and I cautiously poked my head in and looked around. Nobody was in the living room. I exhaled and stepped in, making sure to get the mud off my shoes before I walked in, because it was raining outside.

"_Ano… sumimasen? Sumimasen?_" I called out. Suddenly, a figure appeared out of nowhere. Hotaru approached me with a white, furry dog in her arms.

Seventeen-year-old Hotaru, only one month younger than me, was still different from me in so many different ways.

"_Ohaiyou,_ Mikan," she greeted me.

"Ah." I stared at the dog, who Hotaru called Lulu, enviously. I've always liked animals, but animals were always so expensive. Even getting a fish was out of question. When buying medicine for your sick mother was a problem, who would think of buying a damn _fish_?

"Where's father?" I asked, looking around.

"I'll call him." Hotaru placed Lulu on the floor gently, then went to a wall and pressed a white button, speaking into the microphone.

"Mikan's here." Hotaru's voice vibrated throughout the mansion, clear and toneless. My eyes widened with awe. So _this_ was an intercom system!

"Ah, Mikan. _Gomen_ for not greeting you sooner." Seiji descended the stairs.

"_Eh_? _I-ieh_, not at all." I looked down at my shoes. This was going to be very hard indeed.

"Here's the money." Seiji placed a familiar envelope in my hands.

"Um…" I said hesitantly.

"Oh, where's Yuka today? She always comes with you." Seiji looked around the room for Mom, but she wasn't there.

"She, uh—" I looked down at my feet again, then blurted out, "Mom's sick."

Seiji nodded sympathetically. "I see. Go buy her some medicine, alright?" He patted my shoulder, a sign that meant, '_You're dismissed,'_ but I wasn't done with talking.

"No… father, she's really, _really _sick. She… she has a high fever and frequently coughs up blood." I felt my eyes brim up with tears. I hurriedly wiped them away, hoping Hotaru and father didn't see any signs of weakness in my face.

I had to stand strong, and always strong, to protect Mom and myself. It was a survival instinct.

Seiji closed his eyes and sighed. "What's your point, Mikan? Do you want more money?"

I squeezed my eyes shut in prayer. "Yes," I whispered.

"How much?"

"I want to send Mom to a hospital—"

"I _said_, how much?" was his cold interruption.

I was silent for a while, then replied, "One hundred fifty dollars, at least."

Seiji nearly fell over. Hotaru even showed a sign of surprise in her emotionless face for a moment. She placed Lulu on the floor and hurried upstairs, to get away.

"Mikan, you _know_ how hard the economy is right now, yet you still…"

"_Odou-san!_ It's not about _me_, it's about Mom! Don't you care about her?" I wailed. I sensed that I would somehow lose this battle, and I didn't want to lose. I wanted to win.

"Yes, I care, but, I also have to care for _this_ family as well!" Seiji roared, getting up to his feet and pointed his finger at the stairs.

My voice trembled as I spoke. "I g-get it. You care more about _them_ than us. I get it a-all now." I sniffed.

"_Dai-kirai! _I HATE YOU, I HATE YOU!" I screamed. I couldn't control myself now; I wanted to scream as loud as I could. How could father do this? He didn't even _care_ about Mom at all!

I grabbed the front door handle, preparing to walk out of the mansion, but Seiji's iron hand grabbed my shoulder roughly and pulled me back to the living room.

I dared to look in his face with a defiant look, but once I saw his expression, I withered. His face was red and his eyes were blazing with fury. He raised his hand and slapped me.

My whole face stung as I fell to the floor, clutching my throbbing cheek. Tears were streaming down my face. Suddenly, I heard the clatter of someone coming downstairs. I looked up and saw Hotaru running toward me.

"Take this. Inside is some of my savings, it has a total of ninety dollars. I'll try to get more to you later, but just leave now. You don't want to make father mad," she whispered in haste. She shoved a pink, flower-scented envelope to me and gave me a hand to help me up.

I didn't take that hand. Instead, I got up myself and thrust the envelope back to her. "I don't need it."

Hotaru looked at me in disbelief.

"Hotaru." Seiji commanded.

Hotaru turned slowly toward her father. _Our _father.

"Step aside."

Hotaru hesitated, then stepped aside, but did not leave the living room.

"YOUICHI!" Seiji's voice boomed.

Youichi appeared the top of the stairs after a while.

"What took you so long?"

"I was on the phone with my girlfriend," was sixteen-year old Youichi's reply.

Seiji shook his head. "Get my horse whip."

Even stony Youichi's eyes were filled with fear. "W-what are you going to do with it, Dad?" His eyes flitted over me.

"_Just get it._"

Youichi stopped for a moment, then hurried off.

My mind was totally blank right now. Father wouldn't _really_ do that, would he?

Youichi climbed down the stairs with the whip. He held it in his hands but didn't give it to father.

"Give. Me. The whip, Youichi." Seiji held out his hand.

Youichi closed his eyes, then reluctantly held the whip to Seiji. Seiji grabbed it, then walked over to me.

Suddenly, Miyuki entered the room. "What's going—" Her eyes caught Seiji standing over me with a whip. "Oh, it's _you_, Mikan."

The whip suddenly came down, without warning. I was too busy focusing on Miyuki to prepare myself, so the pain was excruciating. More vicious lashes followed, and I screamed in agony as I rolled around the floor, somehow, trying to avoid the lashes. But if one lash missed, two more would reach their target. Faintly, I heard Miyuki burst-out laughing, Youichi clambering up the stairs to escape the horrifying scene, and Hotaru crinkling the envelope. I also heard Sumire dance down the stairs in her little high-heels and jump up and down like she was watching a good show.

I never felt so humiliated in my entire life. Humiliation and rage possessed me as I screamed, "I'm going to sue you for abuse!"

"Sue _me_? SUE ME? Do you know how many connections I have? You'll never even get the chance." Seiji's laugh echoed throughout the room, and lashes kept coming down at me.

_Damn_. It was true; Father was very powerful in this society.

After a couple minutes of hell, Seiji finally stopped, heaving big breaths. Hotaru hurried to me and tried to help me up, but I pushed her away. I attempted to stand up myself, but failing three times. On the fourth time, I finally got up, but I had to support myself on the couch. My whole body burned like hell.

"From today, I'M NOT GOING TO BE YOUR DAUGHTER ANYMORE. And you can forget about having such a _poor_ daughter like me."

I laughed like a maniac. "People can't believe that a 'Sakura' like me is living in such a dilapidated house. They always ask, 'Why don't you live in the mansion?' and I always reply the same answer each time, 'It's because we aren't good enough'."

"I'll _never _come to ask for money here again!" I yelled before slamming the door shut and running out. I fell to the wet ground the moment I exited the gates of the mansion. The rain drenched my clothes and the ice cold wind whipped my face and wounds, as if I didn't receive enough pain.

I heaved myself up, but fell down again, crashing into a puddle and getting mud on my sleeve.

"Mom! _Dasukete…_" I wailed. I felt like I was drowning in the rain…

I finally succeeded in heaving myself up and I walked like a drunken woman in the rough direction of my house. Suddenly, an expensive looking black Mercedes came rushing at me, and I acted like a deer looking at headlights, I froze.

The car came to a screeching stop and I fell to the ground again. A guy came rushing out of the car without an umbrella and took a look at me.

"_Daijoubu-desuka_? I'm sorry…" He offered a hand to me and I took it. He had blonde hair and baby-blue eyes. I stared at his eyes for a second then realized how disgusting I must look. I pushed him away then continued walking away.

"_Chotto!_" He reached out a hand to stop me, but I fell to the ground again.

"Where are you going?" He gave me his hand again.

"I… I don't know." This time, I felt hot water pour down my cheeks, I knew it was tears.

"Here, where's your home? I'll send you back." He guided me to his car, but I shook my head.

"I have ta-two homes… b-but one isn't fit for a home, and the o-other… does not welcome me like a h-home…" I stuttered. The rain was getting to me, and I realized I was shivering. The guy took off his jacket and wrapped it's coziness around me. I looked at him with teary eyes.

"Here," he said softly, "why don't I take you to my apartment?"

I blinked, then looked into his eyes. I knew I shouldn't go with strangers… but this guy, he seemed like a good person. But still…

"I'm not a bad person, please, I don't want you to freeze," he pleaded.

I made up my mind. I stepped into his warm car and bundled up in his jacket. He smiled as he closed the door and drove off to his apartment.

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"Here we are." He took a card from his pocket and slid it in a black slot. Suddenly, a green light flashed and the number three appeared. Then, the door popped open.

He made a gesture to let me come in, but I just stood there in awe. I didn't even get in, but I already knew the place was _huge_. Carefully, I stepped in.

"_Ano…_ should I take off my shoes?" I looked sheepishly down at my muddy sandals.

He laughed. "Don't worry, just go barefoot. After, you can wear these." He handed me a pair of silk slippers, just like the ones Hotaru had when I first met her. My eyes bulged as I looked at him uncertainly. He nodded kindly and I smiled.

"You can go take a shower in there, okay? If you need anything, tell me." He pointed to the white button in the bathroom. It was an intercom!

As I stepped into the bathroom, I nearly fell over. The bathroom was bigger than my whole house. Seriously!

"W-wait!" I called out as he closed the door.

He opened it and poked his head in. "What? Do you need something?"

I shook my head. "Um… what's your name?"

He looked appalled. "I thought you already knew my name!"

I didn't want to burst his bubble or anything, but _huh?_

He might've caught my look of confusion and immediately chuckled. "Oh no, it's just that… well, never mind, it's better this way. Let's start over. My name's Ruka Nogi. Nice to meet you."

I stuck out my hand for him to shake, but instead, he kneeled down and kissed it. I blushed furiously and wondered what he was doing. Suddenly, I had a memory of a movie long ago.

_Oh… _I thought. _What a gentleman. _

"Sorry for bothering. I'll get some clothes from customer service for you…"

I nodded. Then, he closed the door and went out. I exhaled, then turned on the water faucet and took a nice, warm shower.

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

"Nogi-san?" I poked my head out of the bathroom door, clutching the towel around me. "Ruka Nogi-san?" I realized he probably couldn't hear me, since the apartment was so big. I cautiously pressed the white button and jumped back when it made a clacking sound. I furrowed my brow and tried again. This time, I spoke into it. "Nogi-san?"

Suddenly, I heard my voice echoing throughout the apartment. Ruka immediately came over with that familiar big smile and handed me some clothes. I took them and stared at them uneasily.

"What?" Ruka asked.

"Um… it's just that…"

"Oh! Don't worry, you can change in one of the rooms." Even though the mansion was so big, there were only two bedrooms. I walked toward the nearest one and turned the doorknob.

"Uh! Wait!" Ruka suddenly appeared at my side and stopped me from going in. He chuckled nervously. "Change in that room." He pointed to the next room.

I looked at him in bewilderment, then did as he said. I locked the door and took a look inside. Wow… it was a huge room. It was definitely not my style though, since posters of rather _revealing_ models, cars, and motorcycles were plastered around the room. The wallpaper of the room even had flames in them! I thought it was really cool, for a boy's room.

_This must be Ruka's room…_ I thought, but it didn't seem… _right_ somehow.

"_Maa, ika! _Whatever," I chirped cheerfully. I dropped my towel onto the king-sized bed and saw a strapless skin colored bra tucked in between the clothes. My cheeks burned as I thought of Ruka who got these clothes.

_How did he know my size?_ I thought, still blushing, as I wore it. The bra fit perfectly, but, there were scars all over my body. I looked at them, then sighed. At least I'd have clothes to cover it up.

Next, I reached for the pink colored clothes but as I folded it out, I realized it was a dress. I immediately dropped it, grabbed my towel, and unlocked the door to tell Ruka that I didn't need the dress. But, as I grabbed the doorknob, I had second thoughts. I never wore a dress before, so this would be my first time. How would I look?

People say curiosity killed the cat. But I hoped satisfaction would revive me. I dropped the towel and slipped on the pink dress. I was busy fumbling with the lower part of the dress when the door to the room opened.

A tall, messy raven-haired guy sauntered in with his arm snaked around a pretty blonde's waist.

_WHAT? How did the door get unlocked? _Then, I remembered that I was the one who unlocked the door and forgot to lock it again, so, I shrieked.

That seemed to do the trick. The guy blinked, then caught sight of me. "What the hell?" he said. I looked toward the girl, who was as confused as the guy was. I immediately looked down, a little embarrassed, then realized that my dress was still caught and part of my underwear was showing. I fixed it, then heaved a sigh. I hope they didn't see.

I was itching to run to the huge mirror on the other side of the room, but I was also _dying_ to get out of the room and run off to Ruka.

Suddenly, Ruka appeared. "What, Natsume?" He looked annoyed.

"Dude, if you're going to have a little something, then do it in _your_ room." The mysterious guy—Natsume was his name—rolled his eyes. "I'll be borrowing your room then, if you're going to use mine."

"No! Wait… no." Ruka looked a little uneasy. He turned to me. "Sorry, you're going to have to go to my room then."

I blushed. "N-no, it's not a problem." I grabbed my towel and followed Ruka to his room.

As I stepped out of his room, Natsume grabbed my arm and hissed in my ear. "Nice underwear, Polka-dots," he said before shoving me out.

Then, Natsume rudely shut his door with a _bang_ which made me jump.

"What's his _problem_?" I asked Ruka.

"Oh, Natsume. Don't worry about him, he's always like that."

That was not the answer I wanted to hear. I couldn't _believe_ such a gentleman like Ruka lived with such a rude, perverted, bad boy like Natsume.

"Um. Please don't mind my room, okay—" He suddenly stopped. "I forgot to ask… what's your name?"

I opened my mouth to reply, but then stopped. "Is it important?"

"Well… yes, but then again… no…"

I swung Ruka's door open and _again_, I stood in shock. The room was as big as Natsume's, but totally screamed: Ruka. The room had a Hawaii-ocean theme and most of it was baby-blue. The walls didn't have any pictures on them, except for one hanging on the door. Then, I spotted a cluster of things that could be the reason why he didn't want me to go in his room before. "Oh, my gosh!" I ran over to them and held one up. "Is this a _stuffed animal_?"

He turned completely red and snatched it out of my hands. "No, it's not," he replied, trying to sound sarcastic. I laughed. I knew he was just trying to act all tough after I found proof of him acting like a kid with stuffed animals.

"Why do you like them?" I asked, picking up a little stuffed dog. He had _a lot_ of stuffed animals. A lot were on his bed, some on his desk, and a whole lot more in his closet.

"It's because… well, they're _animals," _Ruka replied, gently stroking a stuffed kitty.

"Do you… like animals?" I asked.

Ruka nodded, then flashed me that amazing smile again. "Sorry, if you want, we can leave…"

"N-no! It's totally okay, I love animals too." I smiled at a little stuffed bird. "I just can't get one, because… well, yeah."

Ruka looked at me seriously. "Me neither. My dad gave this place to me, and the only thing I wasn't allowed to do was to get a pet."

"Oh, I se—"

_I'm holding on your rope, got me ten feet off the ground_

_And I'm hearing what you say, but I just can't get a sound…_

"Ruka, is that your phone?" My eyes searched the room for his cellphone.

"Oh, yeah." He pulled out his BlackJack and held it to his ear.

I looked down at my lap, wringing my hands as I heard the one-sided conversation.

"Hey, Koko."

"_What_? Are you serious?"

"She's on a date with another guy? What about the party tonight?"

Ruka was silent for a little while. His eyes looked sad.

"I can't do that… it's too late!"

"I can't go _dateless, _Koko. You know that."

"There is _no _way I'm going to beg her to come with me."

"What did you say?"

"Oh…. Hmm… do I have any candidates…"

Suddenly, Ruka looked at me.

"What?" I mouthed.

He shook his head, mouthing, "Nothing."

I cocked my head to the right, wondering what was going on.

"I have one."

"See you at nine."

He dropped his phone on his bed and laid back on it.

"Who was it?" I asked.

"Oh, it was Koko, my friend. My date to the party got cancelled."

"Oh," I said sympathetically. "That must be hard for you."

Ruka shook his head again. "Nope, not at all. Relationships with me never last… oh, by the way, what happened?"

"Huh?" I replied.

"I mean, they're scars all over your body."

I gasped, just realizing that the halter dress I was wearing right now exposed most of my skin, my scarred skin. I tried to cover myself with my arms, but I failed. Ruka leaned over and touched my shoulder, indicating that it was okay.

I sighed. "I don't really want to talk about it."

"Are you sure? Did somebody hurt you… or… did they…" Ruka looked away.

I gave a dry-chuckle. "Oh no, I didn't get raped, if that's what you're asking."

"That's good. Well, if you don't want to talk about it…" Ruka trailed off. Suddenly, he took my hands into his own. My eyes widened.

"Will you become my date for the party?" he suddenly blurted.

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**-Reviewer's Corner-**

**EvilSuperSquirrel888** – _Thanks for being the first reviewer for the story!_

**Ami-aim14** – _Thanks so much! I hope it will stay excellent for the rest of the story –smile-_

**Dominiqueanne** _– Thanks for reviewing both of my stories! You are awesome!_

**Starrynight3800** _– LOL I'm sorry… I had to have an evil character in the story, just to spice things up a bit. I think she should die too, but since she's my creation… -chuckle-_

**HengHeng** _– Well, Seiji will change his abusive ways in the future chapters, but not Miyuki, sadly. Yeah, I really didn't want to make Hotaru and Mikan half-sisters, but it was to deepen their understanding of each other and to help create a stronger bond with each other, so that's why._

**Pukite **_– Signe-chan! Thanks for reviewing on both stories! –smile- Thanks, I like the story plot too, but I hope it's not too complicated! I hate it when that happens. Cuz, it shouldn't be too simple either, you know? Yeah, it's supposed to be a little sad. It'll get sadder in the future chapters, I guess. Not sure though._

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_How was the chapter? Did you like? –giggle- I finally made Ruka, Natsume, Youichi, Sumire, and Hotaru appear! Hotaru and Ruka were the main people, but still, don't worry, this is a Natsume x Mikan fanfiction. And things will get better between Hotaru and Mikan. This was the longest chapter I ever wrote in my entire life! Wow! I wanted to make it longer, but I don't like too long chapters. Makes it a little boring. I think I made Hotaru a little too docile and dainty, but it was necessary because the whole rich Sakura family are formal people, except for Youichi of course. He's the second Natsume. –smile-_

_Special thanks to my beta-reader/editor: xSTICKYxNOTEx/Gemma-chan, as usual. I had a feeling that there would be many errors in this chapter, since it was so long, and I know, I just know, that she would fix my errors and make this story actually more readable and easy to understand. Thanks so much!_

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks or so, because I have to update my other story: __The Living Dead__ as well as this one. I reply to all of my reviews, so if you have any questions, please note them in your review. _

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message and I'll definitely be glad. :)_

-- Mikarin/VanillaCottonCandy

_**Editor's Note: **__I thought this was going to be a mess of work because of the length, but there wasn't a lot of mistakes! And, of course, it was a great chapter and fun to read, as always. I can't wait for chapter three! -- StickyxNote_


	3. Chapter 3: Crazy Party

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_**Previously:**_

_I gasped, just realizing that the halter dress I was wearing right now exposed most of my skin, my scarred skin. I tried to cover myself with my arms, but I failed. Ruka leaned over and touched my shoulder, indicating that it was okay._

_I sighed. "I don't really want to talk about it."_

"_Are you sure? Did somebody hurt you… or… did they…" Ruka looked away._

_I gave a dry chuckle. "Oh no, I didn't get raped, if that's what you're asking."_

"_That's good. Well, if you don't want to talk about it…" Ruka trailed off. Suddenly, he took my hands into his own. My eyes widened._

"_Will you become my date for the party?" he suddenly blurted._

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▬_Chapter Three: Crazy Party ▬_

I gasped. So _that's_ what he was talking about with his friend! But I couldn't believe it…

"Wh-what do you mean…" I stuttered.

"We're having a party tonight, here at 9. My date canceled, so…could you be my sub-date?" Ruka pleaded, clutching my hands more tightly than ever.

I felt my face heat up. "I… I can't. I have to go."

His face fell. "Why?"

I looked away, he looked so disappointed. "Well, I need to take care of my sick mom…"

Ruka held out his BlackJack to me. "Oh don't worry, just call her and ask her if you can come."

I stared at the expensive cell phone and my hands clenched. "We… we don't have a telephone."

Ruka's eyes widened as his mouth dropped open. I bet it was hard for him to imagine a household in this age not having a telephone.

"Well… is there… any means of communicating with your mom, then?" Ruka asked uncertainly.

I nodded.

"Drive me to my house, please."

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"Whoa! You live close to the Sakura mansion?" Ruka asked, looking in to the rear-view mirror to look at me.

I bit my lip. "Do you know them?"

Ruka laughed. "Do I know them? Of course I do! Natsume is—"

"Wait!" I called out, pointing to the U-turn sign behind them. "You missed the U-turn!"

"_Gomen! Gomen!_" Ruka apologized as he U-turned.

"It's okay." I smiled. "Oh, by the way, can I borrow one of your jackets?"

"Yeah sure." Ruka grabbed one from the front seat and threw it back. I caught it and blinked at the black leather jacket. "Why?"

"Oh, it's just, I don't want my mom to see me… like _this_." I glanced at her scarred arms.

"Oh." Ruka nodded. "I got it."

"Here… here… here it is." I whispered. She pointed to her house that seemed like a dog-house in comparison to the huge mansion standing next to it.

"Th-this?" Ruka pointed as he parked the car.

"Yeah." I looked down at my lap.

Ruka got out and opened to door for me.

"Thanks," I mumbled. "Wait out here, okay?"

"Okay," Ruka replied. He looked around uncertainly.

I walked in and opened the door. Everything was still, so I guessed that mom was still on her bed.

I walked in the bedroom and saw that Mom's eyes were open.

"How did it go? You took a long time, Mikan," Mom said weakly.

"I-it went f-fuh-fine," I was always bad at lying to my Mom, but luckily, she was weak and she didn't pay attention to my stuttering.

"Good. Where is it?"

"Um, I, uh, I put the money in the safety box already, Mom." I averted my eyes from her.

"Oh. Okay, then." Mom lied back down on her bed.

"Mom, actually, I wanted to ask you something…" I started.

"What is it, Mikan?"

"Uh, one of my friends, um, he's having a party and wanted me to go." I talked to my feet.

"Will it be safe? Mikan, you said you won't go to those kinds of parties; you promised me." Mom started coughing weakly. I immediately handed her a glass of water.

"It's not _that_ kind of party, Mom! It's just a little get-together…" Actually, I really _didn't _know what kind of party it was going to be, except that there were dates and Ruka's friends were coming.

"It'll be alright, Mom. I promise." I held out my pinky for her and we did the pinky-swear. It was our little tradition ever since I learned to talk.

"Okay, then, but be careful, alright?" Mom whispered, patting my hand.

I nodded. "I'll be alright. Oh, and don't forget to take your medicine and drink lots of water. And don't get up, okay, Mom? I'll be back at… wait, I'll be right back…" I ran out the door.

"Ruka! When is it over?" It was easy to spot Ruka, who was leaning on the wall, and every girl was staring at him with love, and every guy staring at him with envy.

"Um, probably three or four in the morning," he said casually.

"_NANI?!_" I screamed. "Three or four?!"

He nodded.

"I can't go later than twelve!" I whisper-screamed.

Ruka looked worried. "Well, the earliest I can send you back is two-thirty…"

I sighed. "Just send me back as early as you can, got it? I'll tell my mom I'll be back in a couple of hours."

"Okay."

I ran back in the house and told Mom I'll be back in a "couple" of hours. She nodded as usual and told me to have fun and stay away from alcohol.

"Okay, she said yes," I told Ruka as we went into his car again.

"Cool." Ruka flashed a dazzling smile at me as we sped off.

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

"Mikan, that's your name, right?"

"How'd you know?"

"I overheard your conversation with your Mom," Ruka said.

"Oh." I looked out the car window.

"I'm going to drop you off at my sister's house, alright?"

"Eh? _Doushite?_" I gripped the passenger seat.

"Well, she's going to do your make-up and everything."

_Make-up? And everything?_ I gulped. This party seemed to get more and more intimidating as time went on.

"Don't worry, she's cool. She doesn't speak a lot of Japanese though,"

"What's her primary language?" I asked.

"French."

My cheeks paled. French, huh? My worst subject.

"Here we are." We drove up to a huge mansion with flowers blooming in all the right places. There was a circular driveway and in the center of it all was a mini-waterfall.

Ruka rang the doorbell.

A maid dressed in a frilly, expensive maid uniform opened the door and bowed immediately.

"_Bonsior!_" she exclaimed, reaching for his jacket and placing it on a jacket hanger. "_Venir en, maître Lucas_!"

"_Merci, Aimée." _Ruka replied.

I just stood there, wondering what they were talking about. Wait, I think I caught a "bon" somewhere… were they saying _bonjour_? It didn't really sound like it though… One thing's for sure, the maid's name is Aimee or something like that.

But wait, who was _Lucas_?

"_D-domo, _Aimee-san!" I bowed as she turned to me.

"_Vous avez un invité_?" Aimee looked bewildered. "_Ce qui est dit elle_?"

Ruka nudged me. "All the maids here, including my sister, don't know Japanese, Mikan!" he whispered urgently.

"Oh! Sorry…" I whispered back. I turned to Aimee. "B-b-bonjour!"

Her eyebrows were raised up, but she nodded and showed us in.

"Waaa…" I took in my surroundings. The house was definitely bigger than Ruka's apartment, hell, it was a house, after all, and the style was _completely_ different from the apartment. From one glance, you could tell that this girl loved art and decorations. There were many huge paintings on the walls, each framed with gold. The furniture looked damn expensive. It reminded me of the Sakura mansion, but I tried not to think about that.

"_Comment allez-vous, Lucas_!" A voice suddenly called out. I turned my head to see who it was. A girl stood on top of the spiral, red-carpet stairs, smiling and looking like a queen. She held her dress up and slowly descended down the stairs.

"_Claire!" _Ruka walked to her sister and kissed her on both cheeks, with a polite French style I've seen in movies.

"_J'ai obtenu votre appel! Est-ce la fille_?" She pointed at me. I, who had no idea what they were saying, jumped back a little.

"_H-hai?_" I replied, uncertainly.

Ruka nodded. "_Oui, c'est elle. Pouvez-vous faire?"_

She suddenly came up to me and grabbed both of my hands. I blinked as she stared into my eyes. I just noticed how beautiful she actually was. It wasn't just the aura around her that was queen-like, but her looks matched those of a queen as well. She had blonde hair that was manually curled at the ends and currently let down. Her baby blue eyes were almost doll-like, with long, dark eyelashes. Her eyebrows were also defined to perfection.

The only thing I didn't really like about her appearance was that her breasts were very large. Too large for my taste. They looked like a D-cup to me. I looked down at my A-cup breasts and sighed.

"_Bien sûr, je peux le faire! Laissez-le moi." _

Ruka nodded. Suddenly, his sister clapped her hands twice. Just like that, four maids closed in on me and dragged me to an unknown room. I didn't really struggle much, since this was _Ruka's _sister, after all, but I couldn't help but feel startled and confused.

Before I came to my senses, they plopped me into a chair and spun it around so it faced Ruka's sister. I gulped. She was about the same height as I was, but still, I was sitting down, so, from my perspective, she looked really tall with her intimidating boobs.

"_Ano… eto… sono… nani-shiteru-no?_" I laughed nervously. She was scrutinizing my face, tapping her fingers on her right thigh.

"_Mettons-nous au travail! Aimee, Émilie, Gabrielle, Alice! Vous savez ce qu'il faut faire."_

"_Oui, maître Claire!"_

Ah, I got it now. So her name was Claire! Claire… Claire… hmm, that was a pretty name, actually.

I spent the next five minutes trying to find out how to say a French phrase while the maids scurried around, gathering materials and clothing. Of course, all Claire did was stare at my face. Honestly, it was getting uncomfortable by the second.

"Um… Pala-voo-ahnageh?" I mentally cursed myself for sleeping during my French classes.

"_Excusez-moi?" _Claire asked.

I knew enough English to understand that it sounded a lot like _excuse me_.

"Pa-la-voo-ah-na-geh?" I repeated, this time breaking it into syllables.

Claire looked as confused as ever. I must not be saying it right. I thought about it for some more, then started again, hoping it was correct this time.

"Parlei-vooan-gleh?" I crossed my fingers, hoping she would understand.

"_Excusez-moi? Parlay… vooan, galeh?" _

Oh no… she wasn't getting it. Why did I have to be so bad at French?

"_Je vois! Vous avez dit: Parlez vous Anglais?" _She suddenly started jabbering away in French again.

I shook my head and brought my hands to my sides, indicating I didn't have a clue what she was talking about.

"_Parlez vous Anglais! Vous avez dit: Parlez vous Anglais?" _She repeated again, a little impatient.

Well, wait, she kept on repeating the same phrase… it sounded like _Pahr-lay voo ahn-gleh… _wait… yes, that was it!

"Um… _oui?_" I nodded. I hoped that meant _yes_ in French.

"Oh, you kn-oh how to speak English?" Her voice suddenly boomed of a British accent.

I gasped. I should be asking _her_ that! She knew how? Why didn't Ruka tell me?

"Yes! Yes! I know how to speak English!" I sighed in relief. I always got best marks for English in my school.

"Th-aw-t makes things a loh-t easi-ah foh us, doesn't it?" She smiled, showing off her pure-white teeth.

"Yes, it does."

"Now we hah-v that settled, let's get down to business." She clapped her hands twice again, and those weird maids came at me again. This time, they deposited me in the bathroom and began stripping all my clothing off.

It was nice and all, yeah, thanks for helping but, _hello?_ Privacy, _puh-lease_? At least they didn't gasp or stare at my scars. I'm not sure if they even noticed them. They went out as quickly as they came in. Seeing that I was completely naked, I guessed I was supposed to take a bath.

I breathed the soft scent of lavender the bathroom had as I turned the faucet on and started filling the huge tub with warm water.

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

The bath products were amazing, I immediately gave myself a refreshing bubble bath. I felt so much better after I emerged from the bathroom with a pink towel wrapped around me.

Claire was sitting at her table, stirring her tea with a petite, silver spoon. She stood up when she saw me. "Ah, good, yo-oh done."

I raised my eyebrows. Her thick British accent was really annoying me, but at least I could understand her.

"Yeah, I'm done. Thanks."

"Yoh welcome. Oh, before we try on yoh dress, rub this all over your body, wherever you have sc-ahs."

I took the lotion bottle and squeezed some brown lotion out. I rubbed it on my arm, and magically, the scars disappeared! Well, not disappear, but they were concealed under the magic lotion!

"What lotion is this, Claire?" I asked excitedly.

She smiled. "It's one of my own designs. It's very famous and works well to conceal scars, burns, or any unsightly marks, like freckles."

"This is _amazing_, Claire! Thank you!" After a few minutes, I rubbed my whole body and there wasn't one scar to be seen.

"How long does this last?" I asked.

"For twenty-foh ow-ahs. You should be fine."

"Thanks, again, Claire."

"No problem. Now, let's choose yo-oh dress." She turned to her bed and to my surprise, there were already four different dresses laid on them. "I took a good look aw-t yo-oh bod-ee. You are a size foh with small breasts. You have nice hips, and look about 5'3-5'4."

_Wow. _My eyes widened. She was dead accurate. I was five feet three and a half inches. And _yes_, I had small breasts compared to hers.

Claire put her hands together, ready to clap again, when I stopped her. "Let me strip _myself_, alright?"

"Shu-aw. Shu-aw," Claire replied dismissively.

I rolled my eyes as I dropped my towel and reached for the first dress and wore it.

As I got rid of the wrinkles, Claire spoke up. "This is a Nicole Mill-ah luxuri-us silk floral chiffon dress. It is strapless, as you can see, with an ah-dorable bow in the front."

I glanced at the floor-to-ceiling mirror and spun around. It wasn't bad, not bad at all! The dress was so pretty and looked so expensive… but I don't think it really fit, _me_.

"I think it has hottie pa-ten-shol, but not on you. But of cou-se, it depends on you, the wea-ah."

"No, I agree. It doesn't seem, _right_, somehow."

"Roi-t, roi-t, now, onto the next dress!"

I reached for the next dress, which was black and a short and slithered it on.

Claire spoke again. "This one, one of moi fav-arite leetle black dresses. I love the tulip-shaped sk-eht. Absolutely sensational, but not on you."

I felt like I was punched in the stomach. To be honest, I loved how the dress looked on me, but if Claire said so… then…

This went on for about six more dresses until I was weary and my arms were tired from wearing and taking off dresses.

"Why the tired look, Mik-uhn? This is all foh you!" Claire took a sip at her tea, which she refilled.

"Okay. Okay. Next dress." I slowly got up and stumbled my way towards the next dress. I reluctantly pulled it over me and glared at the mirror, until I saw what I looked like.

_Oh. My. God._

Claire's eyes were wide too.

I mean seriously, I actually looked… _cute_! Even a little flirtatious, must I add. After all, the dress—no, it was actually a mini-dress—was pink, barely covered my mid-thighs, and strapless. It looked _hot_.

Claire stared at me a moment before announcing the dress's details. "Mm… I must admit, it looks very good on you, Mik-uhn. This is a Y-Yigal bubble mini-dress, very sexy, must I add. However—"

"Never mind however! This is perfect! _The _one!" I spun around, admiring what it looked like on the back.

She sighed and stood up. She placed her hands on my shoulders, making me face her. "Mik-uhn, I fully und-uh-stand yoh Lucas's sub-date, but it doesn't mean nobody-ee will try to make their move on you during the pah-ty."

"Huh? Lucas? You mean… Ruka?"

"That's his full name. But that's not the point!" Claire shook her head. "Mik-uhn, just he-ah me out this time, don't wear a mini-dress to your first party at Lucas's place."

I blinked and pouted, but nodded obediently. I understood, kind of, what she meant. I felt really sad though, I really looked good in that pink minidress. But I promised my mom I wouldn't do anything that would make her worry, so I guess it was all for the best. If I came home from the party a non-virgin, I would _die._

Wait. Wait. Is she trying to tell me that Ruka's parties are usually… un-_safe_? I gasped. "Exactly… _what_ kind of friends does he have?"

"His friends? Oh, they're usually rich, just like him, but they ah all play-uhs." Claire frowned.

"O-oh," I said, taking off the pink minidress.

"But if yoh with Lucas, you'll be fine, Mik-uhn. Do not worry." Claire handed me the next dress, which was a pleasant aqua color. I slipped it on and adjusted the halter straps.

"_Mik-uhn! Mon Dieu! Vous... Aimee, Émilie, Gabrielle, Alice! Venir!_" Suddenly, all the maids came over and stared at me, clapping their hands in excitement.

"Mik-uhn! Go, look at the mi-uh!" She turned me around and I looked at my reflection. I gasped. Now, I knew the pink minidress wasn't _the _one, it was definitely this one. I spun around, admiring the dress, loving the dress.

"This is a Betsey Johnson 'Pixy Stix' halt-uh baby-doll dress. With sheer silk chiff-uhn. Refreshing aqua col-uh. I think this is the one."

I nodded breathlessly. "Yes, it is," I breathed.

"_Parfait! _Now, wear it well, and let's do yoh make-up!" She ushered me towards the desk with a huge mirror and plopped me down on the chair.

"Now, I will be exclusively doing yoh make-up, so do not fidget! Do not budge! One mistake will create many oth-uhs," Claire instructed, snapping her fingers and jabbering away in French to her maids. The maids scurried around, giving black boxes to her that contained make-up wands, tools, and accessories.

She waved a wand in my face, but then dropped it and gasped. "_Mik-uhn!_" She shrieked.

Did I do something wrong? "Yes?" I whispered.

"Mik-uhn! Yoh eyebrows ah horrible! We need to fix them _fah-st!_ _Gabrielle!_" Claire shouted.

The blonde-hair maid immediately gave Claire a purple box. Claire immediately opened it and took out the utensils. First, she got out an ice pack and started dabbing my eyebrows with it. _Damn, _it was cold and numbing!

"Stop moving. This is to numb the pain," she snapped.

_Pain?_

I spent the next ten minutes howling as Claire plucked my eyebrows with such ferocity. She ended up having me tied to the chair while she plucked. It was _that bad_. After it was all done, she wiped off the red eyeliner off my eyebrows and made me look in the mirror. _Hell!_ The area surrounding my eyebrows was red, not because of the eyeliner, but because it was plucked and it _hurt_!

"Do not worry. The red will fade," Claire said as she filled in my eyebrows so they were three shades darker than my hair color. I hoped I could trust her with the whole "the red will fade" thing.

She towered over me with her make-up tools in hand. I couldn't help but cower at her. First, she came at me with an eyeshadow sponge. Next, she put eyeshadow on my entire eyelid.

"Wait, Claire, you're _sure_ I'm not going to look emo if you put eyeliner and eyeshadow on me?" I asked again.

"No, no, no! The ans-uh is no!"

God, _somebody_ was cranky.

I sighed as she did her work on my eyelids. I couldn't keep track of what she was doing anymore, I was too stressed. So I relaxed until she came at me with an eyeliner pencil.

"No! No eyeliner, Claire! You're going to poke my eyes out!" I turned my head so she couldn't do my eyes. Claire put her hands on her hips and clapped twice. Two maids came at me and held my jaw in place, the other two pinned my hands down to the armrests of the chair.

No! What was this? This is abusing my rights as a human!

Claire smiled kindly. "Mik-uhn. I am a professional make-up artist. Do you not trust me?"

"I _trust_ you, Claire, but this is a totally different—"

"_Trust me_, Mik-uhn. I do not want my beloved brother's date to ha-hv their eyes poked out. Here's a trick, look up when I'm doing the bott-um, al-roit?"

I shut my eyes, then opened them. "Okay!" I shouted, louder than I needed to.

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

"_Lucas_! Elle a fait!" Claire pushed me out to meet Ruka. We spent the last two hours doing my hair, face, body, shoes, etc. I had to admit, Claire was the bomb. Ruka walked up to me and his eyes literally lit up. I giggled. "So, how is it?" I asked him.

"You look… amazing." He turned to Claire. "_Excellent travail, Claire._"

Claire smiled. "_Elle a été difficile._"

Ruka laughed. I looked at him. "What did she say?" I asked in Japanese.

He whispered to me, "I said 'Good job' and she said 'You were very difficult'."

I blushed. "Was I, really?" He shrugged at escorted me out the door.

"Thank you so much, Claire!" I said in English, hugging her.

"No problem. Ha-hv fun at the pah-ty!" She waved and blew an air kiss to me. I giggled and blew one back.

I entered with my body full of scars, messy hair, and no make-up. I came out of Claire's house with an unmarked body, beautiful slightly curled hair, an expensive dress and a pair of perfect shoes, and so much more. I clutched my handbag that came with the dress close to me and I teetered unsteadily on my new 4.25 inch stiletto high heels. They were the beautiful color of champagne and satin. I felt powerful and ready to take on anything.

"What time is it?" I asked Ruka as we were in his car, driving back to the apartment.

He consulted his Rolex. "It's 9:04pm."

I gasped. "Oh no! We're late! It's all my fault, I'm so sorry…"

"_Daijoubu! _It's always good to arrive fashionably late, as people say." He chuckled, parking his car in the parking lot. He opened the door for me and linked his arm with mine as we walked to the apartment. I knew I was blushing like mad, but I couldn't help it. It wasn't everyday that a rich, handsome gentleman like Ruka asked you to be his date for a party.

Ruka opened the door to his apartment and stepped inside. Immediately, there were happy shouts.

"Yo! Ruka's here!"

"'Sup, man?"

"It's Ruka!"

"You're late."

The last one, of course, came from the perverted dog, Natsume. To my surprise, he wasn't standing next to the pretty blonde he was with today, but another girl, a red-head. What a playboy.

"Mikan, come in." Ruka smiled at me. I realized I was still standing outside, so nobody could see me. I cautiously stepped in and was amazed. Glass tables were set up, offering snacks and fruit. Many more sofas were seen and right now, people were lounging on them. There even was a drink bar that I didn't notice before.

"Where's Jackie?" A dark-blue haired boy asked.

I blinked. "Jackie" must be the girl that cheated on Ruka!

"Oh, we're over. This is Mikan." Ruka gestured to me. I didn't know what to say, so all I did was smile.

"Haha, you scored big, Ruka. So _this_ is the girl?" A guy with spiky, golden hair with a big smile winked at me. I blushed and turned away.

Ruka nodded. "Yeah."

"Nobody wanted to drink yet since you weren't here, dude, so let's start the party now." Natsume grabbed a drink from the bar and gulped it down.

Everybody cheered and joined in, clanking their glasses and downing the beer.

"Hey, can I call you Mikan-chan?" The dark-blue haired boy suddenly tapped my shoulder.

"Uh, y-yes, of course," I stuttered. My God, he looked too handsome, but he was a little too old for my taste. He was holding hands with a pink-haired girl that looked about the same age as him.

"Hi, Mikan-chan, is this your first time here?" she asked, smiling at me.

I smiled back. They seemed like nice people. "Yeah."

"Cool. My name's Misaki, and this idiot here," she slammed her fist on top of his head, much to his dismay, "is Tsubasa."

I laughed. They looked so cute together.

"How about I give you a tour around? You look pretty cute," Tsubasa chimed in, grinning. Before I responded, Misaki hit him again.

"Don't mind him, Mikan, _I'll_ give you a tour. Come on." She linked arms with me, and we sped away from Tsubasa.

"That boy, you see that boy? The one with the weird smile and golden porcupine hair? Yeah, that one. That's Koko. Good guy, him. The pink-haired girl next to him is Anna. Both are very nice." Misaki pointed to the guy next to Koko. "_That_, is Mochu. He can get quite aggressive sometimes, especially when he's drunk, so be careful around him if you're by yourself. His date is that dark-blue haired girl, Wakako. She acts like a spoiled brat and gets everything she wants, so don't get on her bad list, unless she's drunk."

I nodded, thinking of Sumire all of a sudden. "Okay."

"Moving on. Okay, that's Yuu and Nonoko. We call Yuu '_Iinchou_' sometimes to tease him, but both of them are really smart and fun to be around. Good people. That's Youichi. He's younger than most of us, including his date, Aoi, who is actually Natsume's sister. Oops, I forgot to mention, that arrogant bastard over there with his hand on that red-haired girl's butt? Yeah, that's _the_ Natsume."

I rolled my eyes. "I know. I had a unfortunate encounter with him today."

Misaki's eyes widened. "Really? Tell me _everything_ later. Anyways, after that, there are a bunch of guys without dates. Either they got dumped on the last minute, or they just came because they are Natsume or Ruka's friends. Most of them just come to drink though. You gotta feel sorry for the ones without dates. They look so gloomy and depressing."

I thought of how Ruka said that he couldn't go without a date. I understood why now. The guys in the corner were literally making mushrooms.

"Cool. Thanks, Misaki."

"No problem! If you need anything, just come get me, 'kay? See ya!" She walked away, probably in search of Tsubasa.

I exhaled. This party wasn't bad at all, except that everyone here was drinking. I promised Mom that I would stay away from alcohol, and it was a promise I planned to keep. I searched around for Ruka and found him chatting with Koko and Mochu. He saw me and waved me over.

"Guys, once again, this is my date, Mikan," Ruka introduced me.

"Hi," I said shyly. Koko smiled at me, no surprise, and Mochu wolf-whistled.

"You're beautiful, Mikan. If Ruka cheats on you, call me, okay?" Mochu winked. I wanted to gag, but I kept my smile plastered onto my face.

Ruka sensed my discomfort and quickly retorted, "You're more of a player than I am, and you know that, Mochu."

Koko laughed and slapped a high-five with Ruka. Mochu laughed as well.

Seriously, I don't get guys.

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After that, they played a few party games, like, _Spin the Bottle_ and _7 Minutes in Heaven_. I didn't participate in any of those games, but I participated in _Truth or Dare_, because everyone pulled me in. I agreed, but only before I talked to Ruka about it first.

"Okay! This is how it's gonna go," Koko said. "We'll use the bottle and whoever it lands on, the spinner will get to ask Truth or Dare. If it already landed on you, then you can't play until the next round. Got it?"

Oh great.

Koko spun the bottle and it landed on Yuu. "Truth or Dare."

Yuu blinked a couple times before choosing. "T-t-truth!"

"How many girls have you knocked-up in your lifetime?" Koko grinned evilly. Everyone had evil smiles on their faces as well. Yuu side-glanced at Nonoko, then at Koko.

"Um… um… umm…" He stuttered.

"Hurry up!" Everyone shouted, except for me.

"Um. None."

"What? You're a virgin?" Koko asked. "I mean, I knew you were goody-goody, but…"

"I answered your stupid question, alright?! Give me that bottle." Yuu looked very cranky.

This time, the bottle landed between Anna and Nonoko. Apparently, it meant that both of them had to do it.

"Truth or Dare?"

Anna discussed it with Nonoko. "Dare," they both replied.

"O-o-okay." Yuu thought for a while. "Both of you, run down the hallway and back… um…"

"NAKED!" Mochu ranted. Yuu blushed and nodded slowly.

Anna and Nonoko's mouths dropped open.

"Hey…" I reached out my hand to stop them, but Anna and Nonoko were already being pushed out the hallway. It was too late to save them.

One minute later, Anna and Nonoko were stripping as they ran down the hallway, running as fast as they could to get it over with. The boys cheered and the girls looked on in sympathy.

The next bottle landed on Natsume. Anna and Nonoko smiled as they asked him, "Truth or Dare."

He immediately replied, "Dare," in a lazy voice.

"Okay, then, do a strip tease, _all the way_."

My mouth opened. He stood up without hesitation and started loosening his tie dramatically and throwing it to the side. All the girls, except for me, fought to catch it like a wedding bouquet. Next, he stripped off his shirt and exposed his six-pack to the world.

It wasn't that I wasn't _satisfied_ with his delicious abs—wait, _delicious_? Hell, that's not what I meant—but the whole thing was making me a little nauseas.

"Bathroom," I told Ruka, while I stood up and got away. Everyone seemed surprised. Usually, anybody would stay and watch Natsume until the end, even if they crapped in their pants.

Haha, too bad, not me, though.

When I came back, luckily, it was done. However, the bottle landed on _me_. Damn.

It was Mochu who spun the bottle. "Truth or Dare."

I couldn't say "truth", definitely not. What if they asked me about my family? "Dare," I replied, hoping my voice sounded strong.

"Hmm…" he drawled. "You seem like a goody girl, so make-out with Ruka in front of us."

"W-what?" My cheeks were on fire, and my body broke out in cold sweat.

"Hey…" Ruka interrupted. "Let's let her off the hook, okay? She's new."

"No way, man! It's _because_ she's new! We see Natsume's abs every party, but we never saw her before!" Mochu cried out.

"Just leave her alone," Ruka growled.

"That's funny, Ruka. Don't you want to make-out with your _date_?" Mochu smirked.

"That's…" Ruka looked like he was fighting with his inner self. "She's only my sub-date, okay? Jackie cheated on me on the last minute, so I brought Mikan. Happy now?"

Everyone was silent.

"Let's just start drinking, dudes," Natsume interrupted, opening a can of beer and gulping it down. Everybody agreed and opened cans of beer. Koko handed one to me, but I shook my head and pushed it away.

I stood up and walked over to the balcony, which had a clear view of the night sky. It was so dark outside… not even the stars could lighten it up. I looked at the clock. It was two in the morning. I wondered if Mom ate her medicine and drank enough water.

This party… was not what I expected it to be. I wanted to go back home… I liked the quiet life much better. I sighed, suddenly thinking about Hotaru. Did she go to these kinds of parties? She _was_ elite, beautiful, and rich after all. Ack, why was I thinking about _her_? It's partially her fault that Mom and I are so pitiful.

I stayed outside for about ten minutes, then went back in. It took only ten minutes for the sober people at the party to become drunk. The drunkest was Mochu. He was singing "Teletubbies" and flailing his arms while dancing on the couch, so it was easy to tell.

I wanted some quiet time with Ruka's stuffed animals. This party wasn't meant for me. I grabbed the door handle to Ruka's room, but suddenly, a hand was on my shoulder. I turned around to see who it was, but before I could see, I was yanked back and somebody slammed me into a wall. It wouldn't have hurt if I didn't have scars all over my body.

I yelped as I saw who it was: Natsume Hyuuga. I struggled, but he held me firm. I was trapped, caged, cornered, whatever you prefer. He was panting for some reason, and his breath was a mixture of heavy alcohol and mints. I wrinkled my nose. Disgusting.

"You are so beautiful," he slurred. "Be mine."

With that, he jammed his lips onto mine. My eyes were wide with shock as I tried to push him away. One hand of his was traveling through my curled hair, the other was at my waist.

"Mm! MM!" Why did he have to be so _strong_? The hand at my waist was traveling down to my thigh now. HENTAI!

He paused to nip my ear and whisper, "Sugar, you're being too loud."

I turned my head, but his lips just followed me wherever mine were going. I finally succeeded in kicking him in the shin. He grunted and let go of me. He fell on his butt and stared at me with those mesmerizing eyes of his.

I was busy fixing my dress, which somehow became bunched up so that a whole part of my underwear was showing. I groaned. He didn't see it _again_, did he?

"Polka-dots?" He seemed to have come to his senses. "You're _that_ girl?"

My first kiss was stolen by some playboy. I couldn't believe it. I shouldn't have agreed to come to this stupid party today. "Yes, I'm _that_ girl, you perverted playboy." I stalked off to find my handbag.

He followed me. "But you're… didn't you have scars?"

"They _disappeared_," I hissed in annoyance. God, I was in a crappy mood. I finally found my white handbag and hurried to Ruka. He was sitting at the bar, holding a cup of champagne.

"Ruka. Take me home. Now," was all I said.

Ruka looked up at my red face, tangled hair, squinty eyes, and pursed lips. He nodded once and bid good-bye to his drunk friends.

"Mikan—_hic!_—I'm afraid I can't drive you home… I'll have my butler drive you, is that—_hic!_—okay?"

Oh, I got it now. Ruka was drunk. "Yeah, yeah, sure whatever." I slammed the door as I walked out. His butler greeted me and I stomped off to the Mercedez.

I had a 400-dollar designer dress, a pair of champagne-colored 600-dollar shoes, a made-up face done by a professional, and hair done by a professional that people would pay hundreds for, all for free. Most of all, I had _the _Ruka Nogi as my date. I currently had all a girl could ask for.

But still, I felt like shit.

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**-Reviewer's Corner-**

**niceladysakura – **_Hehe yes, Natsume's still quite a pervert, and Ruka's nice as usual. I didn't want to change the characters so much._

**chris3169512 - **_In a twisted way, I'm glad you went emotional! That means my writing was okay, ne? XD I wouldn't consider Seiji to be a father, at this point of the story, as well._

**ami-aim14 - **_Hehe thanks for your words of encouragement!_

**xanimegalx - **_-nod- I think I made Hotaru's caring points of her personality stand out more in the last chapter. But still, she has a kind heart in both the anime and manga, so I just wanted to portray that. And yes, Miyuki is a total bitch. Soon, Sumire will be XD_

**Dominiqueanne **_**– **One word: Thanks! -repeats it over and over again-_

**Starrynight3800 **_**– **Thanks so much! Yeah... it really teared me up to write all those details about Mikan getting whipped. -sniff-_

**Serenade in Silence - **_Love you so much, Chris-chii! -mega hugs- Thanks thanks and thanks!_

**Pukite **_**– **Mm! Yes, Natsume is a playboy in this fanfiction. Hehe yeah, Ruka's still cute and nice as ever. I was kind of sad making him drunk on CHAMPAGNE in this chapter, but at least it wasn't beer...?_

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

_Wow! I think I finished this chapter in record time, for me! I finished this chapter in less than two days! Well, I first had to type up __The Living Dead__, but after that, it took me less than two days to finish this chapter! And it's… long. Wanna dance and celebrate with me? -laugh- I want to specially thank **Pukite**, my dear friend, for suggesting that I should make Natsume playboy. Well, actually, she asked me if he's going to be one, and to be honest, I never thought about it! So thank you so much, Signe-chan. I had lots and lots of fun doing the fashion part, with the dresses and all. Oh, and by the way, I don't know a word of French, except for the basics, like "bonjour", "excusez-moi", etc. If you are French, please pardon my bad grammar, and blame Google's Translator. -laugh- If you want to see what the dress she wore and what shoes, I have the links below._

_Anyway, I changed my pen name to **Snowflaked Angel.** Hope nobody minds! **AND PLEASE VOTE IN MY NEW POLL ON MY PROFILE! YOUR OPINIONS MEAN A LOT TO ME! **_

_Thanks in advance :)_

_Special thanks to my temporary beta-reader/editor: **Serenade in Silence**. She's my other fanfiction beta-reader, but since Gemma-chan was out for this period, I asked her to help beta-read!_

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_**Extra information/links:**_

_(For the links, please add the www. by yourself. The (dot) is actually a "." And (slash) is a "/". There are NO spaces between any of the words in the links, but there are some underscores which look like this: _

_What dress did Ruka pick for her when she first arrived at Ruka's apartment? (Before she went to Claire's house):_

content(dot)nordstrom(dot)com(slash)ImageGallery(slash)store(slash)product(slash)MediumLarge(slash)15(slash)5644195.jpg

_What dress was the dress that Mikan wore for the party?_

adn(dot)is(dot)bluefly(dot)com(slash)mgen(slash)Bluefly(slash)prodImage(dot)ms?productCode2144462&width300&height300

_What kind of shoes did Mikan wear for the party?_

adn(dot)is(dot)bluefly(dot)com(slash)mgen(slash)Bluefly(slash)prodImage(dot)ms?productCode2137669&width300&height300

_Please paste those links onto your address bars and replace the "dots" and "slashes" with the appropriate signs. And, add www. please._

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks or so, because I have to update my other story, __The Living __Dead,as well as this one. I reply to all of my reviews, so if you have any questions, please note them in your review. _

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message, and I'll definitely be glad. :)_

-- Snowflaked Angel


	4. Chapter 4: Forbidden Job

X

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

▬_**Previously:**_

"_Ruka. Take me home. Now," was all I said._

_Ruka looked up at my red-face, tangled hair, squinty eyes, and pursed lips. He nodded once and bid good-bye to his drunken friends._

"_Mikan—hic!—I'm afraid I can't drive you home… I'll have my butler drive you, is that—hic!—okay?"_

_Oh, I got it now. Ruka was drunk. "Yeah, yeah, sure, whatever." I slammed the door as I walked out. His butler greeted me and I stomped off to the Mercedes._

_I had a four hundred dollar designer dress, a pair of champagne-colored six hundred dollar shoes, a made-up face done by a professional, and hair done by a professional that people would pay hundreds for, all for free. Most of all, I have __**the**__ Ruka Nogi as my date. I currently had all a girl could ask for. _

_But still, I felt like shit._

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

▬_Chapter Four: Forbidden Job ▬_

**The Sakura Mansion**

The happy family of five was eating breakfast at a very long rectangular dining table, with an expensive chandelier hanging in the middle. They all solemnly stuffed little bits of egg into their mouths. Nobody spoke.

Suddenly, Seiji cleared his throat, and the whole family turned to look at him. He was sitting at the head of the table. "Youichi," his voice boomed.

"Yes, father?" Youichi was busy remembering the party last night, where was one hundred percent sure he saw his half-sister at.

"After breakfast, go over to Yuka's house. Give her this envelope." Seiji passed the yellow envelope to Miyuki, who was supposed to pass it to Youichi, but Miyuki refused to let go of the envelope.

"Seiji…" she whined, "you _saw_ how that insolent child acted last night! And you still want to give money to her?"

Seiji glared at Miyuki, who withered a little bit. "True, she was being very rude, but I whipped her… and that was something I should've never done."

Everybody looked at Seiji. He never admitted his faults to anybody, and never showed any sign of weakness, ever. But now, he looked so frail, and for the first time, looked like an old man.

Youichi snatched the envelope away from his mother before a fight broke out. He nodded to Seiji. "But I don't think she'll take it, father."

"Then _make_ her take it." Seiji glared at his son. Youichi immediately nodded, knowing it was time for him to shut up.

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I was a stupid fool for going to that party. So I had expensive clothing and shoes. So what? I mentally cursed myself for leaving Mom alone for the thousandth time today.

When I came home from the party, I found that Mom did not eat a _single_ capsule of medicine. She was supposed to take two pills every four hours, for God's sake! To my horror, her water cup was still full, a sign that Mom went for more than five hours, in her sick state, without drinking anything.

Obviously, Mom's condition got worse. I angrily thought about all this as I washed our clothes by hand. The water was ice cold in the bucket, but I didn't feel anything. It was as if I was numb. I scrubbed the clothes ferociously, almost ripping apart the poor thin fabrics that we wore.

_Knock. Knock._

I scrubbed and scrubbed.

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

I blinked. Somebody was at the door. I wiped my hands on my apron and cautiously opened it. The door made an awful creaking sound and I flinched. Not because of the door's sound, but because who was in front of the door.

One of _them_.

I stared at him coldly. "What do you want?"

My _rich_ half-brother looked uncomfortable. "Can I come in?"

My answer was quick and definite. "No."

He sighed. As if _he_ had a reason to sigh while living in that mansion, getting all the money he needed, being pampered by maids and butlers.

"Don't make this hard on me, Mikan."

I couldn't believe my ears. "Hard on _you_? Hard on _you_? You dare say that to _me_, Youichi Sakura?"

He shook his head, probably knowing that he said the wrong thing. Well, he said the wrong thing, alright. "No…"—another sigh—"fine then, can you come out and speak with me?"

I regarded him with deep suspicion, but stepped out and closed the door. He must've seen the dirty, squished kitchen and the hand-washed clothes draped all over the place, because he kind of gasped.

I folded my arms across my chest. My hands were still quite wet from washing clothes. I didn't have time to listen to him gasp and sigh. "Hurry up, I don't have all day."

"O-oh. Alright then." Youichi pulled out an envelope from his crisp black pant-pocket and handed it to me.

I narrowed my eyes and I did not reach out to take it.

"This is from father… he wanted me to give it to you."

I raised my eyebrow. "Oh _really_, now?"

"Mikan…" He seemed to be pleading with me. "Just take it. You said yourself how much you needed the money."

What, exactly, was going on through my mind right now? Feelings of temptation, loneliness, angriness, and more, but absolutely no happiness or gratitude.

Zip. Nada.

"You heard me last night. I don't want your money." I pushed the envelope toward Youichi, who seemed to be gritting his teeth.

Finally, just like I knew he would, because he was _so_ much like our, no, _his_ father, he exploded.

"I SAW YOUR SHITTY HOUSE! JUST TAKE THE MONEY AND I WON'T BOTHER YOU AGAIN!" He yelled at me.

I laughed. Really, I laughed. It was the kind that was full-blown and hysterical.

"Don't think I didn't see you last night," Youichi suddenly lowered his voice.

I froze. "Wh-what do you mean?"

He glared at me. "At the _party_."

I gasped, then immediately regretted it. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Now it was _his_ turn to laugh, but it was a mean, cruel laugh. "Stop lying. I saw Misaki with you, introducing you to everybody. My date was Aoi, Natsume's sister."

I felt as if I got slapped in the face. I struggled to remember…

"…_both of them are really smart and fun to be around. Good people. That's Youichi. He's younger than most of us, including his date, Aoi, who is actually Natsume's sister. Oops, I forgot to mention…"_

I gasped and my hands flew up to my mouth. Youichi. Was. At. The. Damn. Party.

I wanted to scream, but above all, I wanted to crawl into a hole and stay there forever. _Youichi was there_?

Youichi was there…

Youichi was there…

"Oh what's this? Explosive-Cold-Mikan is _actually_ speechless?" His voice was dripping with sarcasm.

I finally pulled myself together and shot him the meanest look I could muster. "You better not tell anyone."

He smirked. "I will if you don't take the money."

I gasped, again. That was _cruel!_ "No… no way!"

"Yes way, if you want your little night-out to be kept secret."

Slowly my trembling hands reached out to take the envelope… but then, I closed my fist and punched my thigh. I couldn't do it. I couldn't take the money. Not after my declaration last night at the Sakura Mansion. Something good and bad about me was that I valued my pride, dignity, and promises very much. I couldn't go back on it.

"N-no." I struggled to find my voice. "No!"

Youichi's smirk faltered. "Wh-what?" He was clearly expecting me to take it.

"NO! I won't take the damn money. Tell the whole world for all I care, and I still won't take it. Ever." I jabbed my finger in Youichi's direction. "And if you _do _tell somebody about last night, then think of these words before you tell: You will never understand what it's like to be whipped by your father. Ever."

With that, I slammed the door in his face. My heart was beating like crazy because I was screaming so much. I slid down to the floor and buried my face in my hands.

With tears threatening to gush out of my chocolate eyes, I let out a sob. The tears raced down my cheeks.

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

One and half months passed since Youichi visited. Nothing major really happened. I went to school, as usual, in the same ragged clothes, got good grades, went home, and helped Mom. So far, I haven't come in contact with any of the Sakura's, or Ruka and his friends.

But, it was best this way.

Mom got better, a little bit. I took on more hours for baby sitting, which made my grades drop a little because of my lack of studying.

But, it was best this way.

Mom was still frail, though. I aided her with everything. I took on all of the household chores, afraid that she would fall into a horrible sickness again.

Ha! That's right, we were getting along fine without Seiji Sakura's money. Just fine.

That's what I thought, until the day I came home from school a little bit earlier, because it was a minimum day. I burst through the doors, content and humming a tune, when I stopped.

My mother was washing clothes. But, they weren't even _our_ clothes.

"Mom… what are you doing?" I asked hesitantly. I made it very clear to her that she was not supposed to do any household work.

"I…" She dropped one of the boxers she was washing. It made a loud splash in the bucket of soapy water. She had a guilty look.

"I…" She began.

"I thought I told you not to work," even I was surprised at the cold tone in my voice.

"Mikan… I wanted to tell you earlier, but I just couldn't find the right time… we're broke."

My heart started pounding strangely in my ears.

We're broke.

We're _broke_.

_We're_ broke.

We are broke.

I tried saying it differently many times in my head, but it still sounded… horrible. "We're… broke?"

Oh no, now Mom was crying. "I'm so, _so _sorry, Mikan, for not telling you earlier…"

"What about my babysitting money?" I asked, trying to keep calm.

Mom looked tearfully at me. "I had to pay rent… the landlord was very angry…" she said in a small voice.

"How much do we have left?"

"Not enough… for groceries…" Mom sobbed.

The back of my eyes hurt, which signaled that I was about to cry. I immediately ran to Mom. I understood. Mom, kind Mom, tried to help by washing our rich neighbors' clothes.

But, I knew, and she knew, that it was no longer enough.

Mom knew asking the Sakura's was no longer an option. I told her all about my trip to the mansion a while ago.

After crying and sobbing together for a long time, I groggily stood up and clenched my fists.

"I'll get a job, Mom." I lifted my chin defiantly. "I'll show the Sakura's that we can do it without them!"

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

I was sweating and tired. I sat myself on a bench. The last week had been nothing but unsuccessful. I spent the whole week looking at newspapers for people hiring. Because I had no means of transportation, I walked to each company, business, shop, etc.

Sometimes the answers would be:

"We've already filled all our positions."

"No, sorry. You're not the type."

But most of the time, it would be:

"You're underage."

I was frustrated and mad. It was a miracle that we managed to survive the week. We sold everything we could sell, but I knew that if I didn't find a job by this week, we'd have to go homeless.

I didn't want to give up. I _couldn't_ give up. I forced my tired, dehydrated body up and I continued walking. I trashed all my newspapers and continued walking around, looking for "Hiring" signs. Finally, I saw one. It was… big. It wasn't exactly a building, it was only two stories high, but it looked certainly prosperous. On the front door, there was a huge "Hiring" sign. On the walls, there were posters a couple of girls' pictures plastered on them.

I grabbed the handle and walked in, ignoring people's curious glances in my direction.

"Wow…" It seemed as if I walked into a movie theater, it was a little dark, and instead of seats, there were tables and chairs. In the very front, there was a stage, and there was somebody on it. It was relatively empty, except for three males, who I assumed were the managers or something.

I walked timidly toward them. They hadn't noticed me yet. As I came closer, I got a good look at the stage. A girl dressed in red was singing, with back-up dancers behind her. Her singing was alright.

"Um, excuse me…?" I called out shyly.

The three middle-aged men turned around. One had brown hair, the other had black, and the other had red hair. They sat in the plush seats in the very back, but in the dead center of the back.

"I was wondering about the 'hiring' sign… are you still hiring?" I asked.

The middle-aged man sitting in the middle with glasses and a cigarette looked at me. His eyes traveled from my ripped up shoes to my holey jacket, to my stiff braids, then back down again.

The brown-haired man stood up to say something, but the black-haired man with the cigarette stopped him. "Can you sing?"

I smiled. This was the farthest I ever went with a job interview. "Yes… I can."

The black-haired man raised his eyebrows. "_Oh_?" He sounded skeptical. "Better than _her_?" He pointed to the girl on stage, who looked about twenty-five years old.

I listened to her. She was alright, but I was definitely way better. "Yes."

The three men exchanged amused glances. The cigarette guy, who was probably the boss, nodded at me. "Then show me."

He clapped his hands. The dancers and singer on the stage immediately stopped and got off the stage.

"Wait… you want me to go up on stage…?" I choked out.

He nodded. "Prove to me that you're a better singer."

"B-but… what song should I sing?"

"Anything."

I bit my lip, but I walked toward the steps to the stage. I wanted a job really badly. I need it!

I adjusted the microphone. "Ahem." My voice rang throughout the huge room. I addressed the live band.

"Could you please play 'Too Little Too Late' by Jojo? Thank you."

I gripped the microphone. The familiar tune of the song started playing on the piano. But suddenly, I heard somebody clap their hands once and the music stopped. I looked up. "What's wrong?" I asked. My chest felt tight. Did I do something wrong? Was I about to lose this opportunity?

The man with the cigarette shook his head. "Try Simple and Clean." He stood up and walked to the front, which took about a minute, since the room was so spacious. He whispered something to the conductor of the band, who nodded once. Then, all the band members got out of their chairs with their instruments and filed out.

I stared in confusion at all of this. What was happening?

He looked up at me on the stage. "You'll be singing Simple and Clean."

"But, why is the band leaving?" I asked uncertainly.

"Because you don't need them with this song."

"I don't…?" But before I could finish my sentence, I suddenly heard music rippling out of the speakers lodged into the walls above me. Simple and Clean… by Utada Hikaru, I assumed. But what… the intro music did not sound like the song at all…

Suddenly, it came to me with a bam. This was a remix of the original. I immediately recognized it now. A couple of my classmates were listening to it on their music players.

_Oh!_

_Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!_

I shot a quick glance at the three men in the middle, watching me. I couldn't really the see their expressions in detail, the stage was so far away, but I could tell they looked quite impassive.

_You're giving me too many things  
Lately you're all I need  
You smiled at me and said (and said)_

_Don't get me wrong, I love you  
But does that mean I have to meet your father?  
When we are older, you'll understand  
What I meant when I said "No,  
I don't think life is quite that simple."_

_When you walk away  
You don't hear me say, please  
Oh baby, don't go _

_  
Simple and clean _

_Is the way that you're making me feel tonight  
It's hard to let it go_

I tapped my foot, and then leaned into the microphone again. Actually, I really liked the remix version of the song. It was really danceable and upbeat, totally my style.

_Hold me  
Whatever lies beyond this morning  
Is a little later on  
Regardless of warnings, the future doesn't scare me at all  
Nothing's like before_

I switched my voice "mode" to whispery.

_Hold me  
Whatever lies beyond this morning  
Is a little later on  
Regardless of warnings, the future doesn't scare me at all  
Nothing's like before_

As I waited the music to finish, I just stood there, not quite sure what to do. I was singing, and when I sing, I don't usually really _hear_ myself sing. So I had absolutely no idea if I sounded tone-deaf or like an angel.

The music ended, and took a quick bow. There was no applause.

"Um…" I spoke through the microphone.

"Come here!" One man yelled.

I got off the stage and walked all the way to the back. They all looked at me seriously. "I'll tell you this," the "leader" said, "you got the job."

My mouth dropped open. I knew I looked hideous at the moment, but I couldn't contain my surprise. "Really?" I asked breathlessly.

He nodded. "But, young miss… do you know what this place is?"

I blinked. What a strange question. I looked around. "Well, from the looks of it… well, I don't really know." I _really_ didn't know. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to answer differently or whatnot, because the men seemed to be expecting my uncertain answer.

"Miss," the one with red hair, "this is a bar club. Also a night club, for dancing."

My hands flew up to my mouth. "Wh-what?"

They didn't answer. They knew I heard them clearly.

"A-a-a _bar club?_" Oh, Heavenly Father above, what place had I stepped into?

"Yes, miss." They were all eying me carefully.

"I-I'm sorry… but I can't accept this job." I spun around I ran out the exit. What trouble had I gotten myself into this time?

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

The three men sat there and didn't move.

"Well. She was a great, no—amazing singer wasn't she, Kyo?" The brown haired man asked the redhead man.

Kyousuke nodded. "Definitely the best singer out of all the ones we have right now. I agree with Aki."

The two men turned to the black-haired man, who seemed to be in deep thought. "What do you think, Tou?"

Toushiro stared his cigarette. "I gave her the job, didn't I?"

"It's too bad the good singers are also good girls…" Akira began.

"Because they would never work in a bar." Kyousuke finished.

"You know what? I think she'll be back," Toushiro suddenly said.

The three suddenly remembered the girl's ripped up shoes, holey jacket, and desperate and frustrated expression.

"She needs a job, badly." Akira nodded; everything was making sense.

"All that's left to do now is to wait. For her." Toushiro extinguished his cigarette in the ashtray.

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

"Mikan… how was it today?" Mom immediately greeted me the second I opened the door.

I sat down on the floor, criss-cross-apple-sauce style. "Actually, Mom… somebody wanted me to work for them."

Mom was clearly expecting the same answer as the past few weeks, because she nearly fell over in surprise. "Why, Mikan! Congratulations!"

I smiled half-heartedly. "Problem is… well… I don't think I can, or _should_, work there."

Mom looked at me quizzically. "But, why?"

I took a deep breath. "You see, Mom… I found out the place was a bar. A night club, singing, dancing club. Something along the sort."

Mom clearly didn't seem to register this for a moment, but after my words got through her, she clutched her heart like it was going to fail. I immediately shot up and helped her regain her balance.

"Bar? Club? Mikan!" She wailed.

"I didn't go there _on purpose_," I said defensively, "I didn't know."

Mom looked at me with woeful eyes. "Mikan, promise me you'll never _ever_ set foot in any place like that ever again. Mikan, promise me."

I opened my mouth to say, "Of course! I promise, Mom." But, something held her back. Instead, she said, "But what if we need the money?"

Mom seemed to notice that I was avoiding her demand. She gripped my shoulders and shook me lightly. "Mikan. Even if someone paid me one million dollars to let you take the job, I would never _ever, ever_ let you. A bar singer!" Mom shuddered. "A shameful job for prostitutes."

I was taken back. "Shameful job for prostitutes"? What did Mom mean? Didn't you just sing for people who were drinking and dancing?

"What do you mean, Mom, by 'prostitutes'?" I asked, not really sure if I wanted to know the answer myself.

Mom, for some reason, lowered her voice to a whisper. "Prostitutes. After singing, bar singers usually… _accompany_ their guests… the guests that paid the highest for the singer that night." Mom shuddered again.

My mouth dropped open. _Really? _I thought. _Really… really?_

"Anyway, Mikan, tell me you'll never set foot in that place again!"

"I… pro—" Unconsciously, I felt my index and middle finger entwine, "—mise."

**(A/N: When your index and middle fingers entwine when you are about to make a promise, you're basically "crossing your fingers", which means that you don't mean your promise at all, and you feel that because you crossed your fingers, you can break the promise.)**

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

But it was clear that I couldn't keep my promise. Not with my mother suffering like this. I'm not as stupid as Mom thinks I am. She pretends to wear a happy smile, and pushes the meager food away, claiming that she didn't have an appetite and that she wasn't hungry.

I'm not stupid.

After only a couple of days, I knew it was time to go back. To the bar.

To take the job.

Amazingly, the three seemed to expect me walking shyly through the doors that day. Beats me how they knew I would come back.

"Ah. So you're back." It seemed as if it was the day I came here, not knowing what kind of place I set foot in, to ask for a job. The three men were still sitting on the plush seats in the very back middle row. The same sultry girl was singing on stage. But now, when I looked at the girl on stage, the innocent curiosity and even admiration that I had on the day I first came here disappeared. It was replaced with fear and anxiety. Would I become a sultry… _thing_ if I accepted this job?

Oh, Heavenly Father above, what have I gotten myself into?

All these thoughts ran through my head as I greeted the three men, telling them that I would like to take the job.

The black haired man stood up and offered his hand to me. "My name's Toushiro Kiyono." I shook his hand politely. "Let's get going to my office, shall we?" Toushiro beckoned to me and led me, along with the two men, through the beaded curtains and up the stairs.

Soon, we came to a room with many beautiful paintings and a huge desk in the center in front of a floor-to-ceiling window.

Toushiro sat himself on the chair in front of the desk and I sat in the chair in front of it. I clasped my hands together nervously, remembering what I rehearsed that morning.

Toushiro pushed a piece of paper towards me. "The contract," he simply said.

I looked over it. It had crammed text on both sides of the paper, and I squinted to read it all. I knew I looked like a dork, taking my time to read all the words on the paper, but I wanted to be safe. When I finally finished reading, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

"I have conditions." I tried to look determined as I stared at Toushiro.

He seemed surprised. "Oh, really? Let me hear them." He leaned back on his chair, waiting.

I took another deep breath. Was it possible to choke on air?

"First, I will only wear outfits that I have confirmed." _No skimpies_, was what Mikan thought in her mind.

Toushiro thought for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. Condition granted. Go on."

"Second, I will only sing once every night. Third, I need to get back to my house before eleven o'clock at night. My mom doesn't know about me being here. Fourth, I need my month's pay on the first day of work. I need… money." I suddenly felt guilty. Very, very oh-so guilty.

Toushiro looked at me carefully. "Okay."

"Fifth," I held my breath, "I will not 'accompany' any guests before, during, or after my singing. I will only sing for the entertainment of others, and do _nothing else_."

I was still holding my breath. If he didn't agree to the fourth condition, then I didn't know what I would do. Walk away from the job? Take the job anyway… and… and…

He consulted with the other two men. Broken parts of their conversation were heard by me.

_Won't…guests will be mad… but she's… we can't… nice voice… no point of having… will be a waste…_

After a minute or two, Toushiro faced me again. He looked at me carefully, and then said:

"Condition accepted."

I gasped, not quite believing it. Toushiro didn't have time to bother with my shocked face. He held out the paper for me to sign, which had my conditions stamped onto the contract. I signed it quickly, wishing that this wasn't a dream…

"Alright, Miss Sakura. You start tonight, but need to stay here and practice, since it's your first time. Your pay will be thirty five dollars a day."

I opened my mouth to speak; thirty-five dollars was absolutely fine, but because I read so many working newspaper ads, I knew that it was below average pay, but Toushiro continued on.

"Of course, that doesn't include tips. If guests like your singing, they will place tips in your basket. All that money, one hundred percent of it, goes to you."

I stopped, then nodded.

"I'll pay you your month's salary today, after you finish singing." Toushiro lit his cigarette. "Anything else?"

I spoke up. "Can I go home and tell my Mom that I won't be home tonight?"

He nodded. "Akira will drive you." He nodded at the brown-haired man, who immediately stepped forward.

Toushiro turned to Kyousuke. "Kyo, can I trust you with the posters?" Kyousuke, the red guy, nodded and stepped out of the room.

"Now, Miss Sakura. I want you to think of a nickname for yourself. You have until five o'clock."

_Nickname?_ _Oh_. I realized that it would be bad if people were talking about "Mikan Sakura" on stage around the town. Toushiro handed a pair of car keys to Akira, who escorted me out.

I sighed as I walked back down the stairs. It was going to be a long night…

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

"Hello?"

Ruka listened to the voice on the other end.

"Tonight? Uh, sorry, we can't." He glanced quickly at Natsume, who was lounging on the couch, flipping through the TV channels without any pause in between.

"Um, we're busy, that's all."

"Other plans? Well, yes, you could say that…"

"Uh, well, actually, it's something private, so Natsume and I would appreciate it if…"

"Sorry, Mochu, but no is no. You can't come with us."

"Sorry… bye."

Ruka hung up and sat next to Natsume.

"Did you get rid of him?" Natsume growled, still flipping through the channels.

Ruka sighed. "Honestly, I don't get why you don't want other people coming along with us."

Natsume rolled his eyes. "Ruka…" his voice drawled, "there are some things we need to keep to ourselves. Our own place, our own thing."

Ruka held his hands up in defeat. "Yeah, yeah, whatever." He glanced at the TV. "Dude, you're making me dizzy with all the channel changing. Just settle down and pick a channel."

"There's nothing to do, other than wait, which you know I hate doing."

Ruka sighed. "Why don't we go change?"

"Don't feel like it."

"Natsume, I'm sorry, but you can't go into a night club in…" Ruka's eyes flitted over Natsume's casual clothes, "boxers."

Natsume growled irritably but stood up.

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

**Three Hours Later…**

"Finally, nine o'clock," Ruka said. He was tired of watching Natsume try to do something to pass the time. But Ruka knew that he, himself, was impatient as well.

Every Friday and Saturday night, he and Natsume would drive their car to their favorite place: Illusion. It was a night-club, and a very grand one. Natsume preferred Illusion because of the great girls, drinks, and music. Ruka preferred it because of the drinks, singer girls, and because nobody they knew came to the club.

They walked towards the familiar neon lights that spelled: Illusion Night Club. Natsume was the first one to strut through the doors. Immediately, a wave of girls rushed over to him and clung whatever part of him was still available. Many girls came to Ruka too, but about a couple less than Natsume.

Natsume and Ruka shook half of the girls off, but the other persistent half stayed. Ruka rolled his eyes as he and Natsume walked to their reserved table, which was reserved just for them every day: Table 16. It was in the back row, but near the middle so they had a perfect view of the stage and the girls performing on it.

As they walked down the aisle, Natsume's eyes caught a sign on the wall:

**New Performer: Skye Kandi**

A picture of a very familiar face, who was smiling sweetly, was plastered on the wall. Natsume paused to get a closer look. Ruka stopped as well. "Natsume, what are you looking a—"

Ruka stared at the poster. "Isn't that… isn't that…" Ruka stammered. _Mikan-san?_ He thought in his head.

Natsume raised his eyebrows, trying to remember where he saw that girl from, but in the end, he couldn't remember.

_Tch, probably some girl that I met with before, _Natsume thought as he tried to stuff his hands into his pockets, but found out that it was impossible due to the dozens of girls clinging onto his arm.

"Go away," he growled, and the girls immediately ran off. Ruka came over to Natsume, also girl-less once more. They both took a seat at their table and sighed. This was what happened every time they came here, so it was no surprise. It became seriously tiring after a while.

"Nat_suuumeee_…" A girl suddenly appeared by Natsume's side. She wrapped her arms around him and cuddled closer. "Remember me?"

Natsume looked at her blankly.

"No."

The girl looked seriously offended. "I was with you for the last five days you were here!"

"Oh."

The girl sniffed and ran away. Ruka watched the scene with no emotion at all. This _also_ happened every time they went here. Still, the girls run after Natsume even though he can't remember a single one of their names, no matter how much time he spent with them.

Ruka beckoned for a waiter. A waiter hurried over and smiled. "What would you like to order, Mister Nogi and Mister Hyuuga?" He held his pen at ready.

Natsume, without looking at the waiter, muttered, "The usual."

Ruka nodded. "Same here."

The waiter jotted down something and trotted away. After a few minutes of just staring at the people in the club, Natsume suddenly turned to Ruka.

"Where have I seen that girl before?" he asked, trying not to sound too curious.

Ruka frowned. Should he tell Natsume? "I'm not sure either," he ended up saying.

Natsume turned his crimson orbs back to the crowd. "Hn."

The music didn't start yet, so nobody was on the dance floor, and everybody was ordering drinks at their tables.

Suddenly, the live band blew on their trumpets and everybody turned their attention to the stage. Out of a corner, laughter was heard and the clinking of glasses.

When Ruka wasn't looking, Natsume stole a glance at Ruka. Natsume was pretty sure Ruka was lying.

_Who's the mysterious girl?_

And more importantly…

_Why do I feel like I have to know who she is?_

**X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X**

_-yawn- I'm so tired… and I'm so sorry. I just realized I haven't updated this in like, a month! God, I'm so disgraceful, and I am SO SORRY! When I just checked the update date for this story, I nearly fell out of my chair. But now that __ The Living Dead__ is completed, another one, __Popular Reject__, has come from my brain –insert tinkling laughter- How was the chapter? I didn't think it was that good, in my opinion, but it has important information necessary to the plot in this chapter, so read carefully!_

_Special thanks to my beta-reader/editor: xSTICKYxNOTEx. _

Mikarin/Snowflaked Angel


	5. Chapter 5: First Song

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

▬_**Previously:**_

_Natsume turned his crimson orbs back to the crowd. "Hn." _

_The music didn't start yet, so nobody was on the dance floor, and everybody was ordering drinks at their tables. _

_Suddenly, the live band blew on their trumpets and everybody turned their attention to the stage. Out of a corner, laughter was heard and the clinking of glasses._

_When Ruka wasn't looking, Natsume stole a glance at Ruka. Natsume was pretty sure Ruka was lying._

_Who's the mysterious girl?_

_And more importantly…_

_Why do I feel like I have to know who she is?_

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

▬_Chapter Five: First Song▬_

"Skye! Where are you?"

"Over here!" I yelled. I was currently backstage in a huge room with different booths with mirrors illuminated by bright light bulbs on its border. A woman named Chidori was currently doing my make-up hastily. Another woman was calling for me now.

"SKYE! _Hurry_! You're not even in your outfit yet!" The other woman panicked. "Come with me! Chidori, finish up!"

Chidori nodded quickly and quickly applied a few more strokes to my eyelid, then patted my shoulder and hurried off.

Backstage, everything was quick, quick, and fast. Nobody was loitering, everybody was moving with haste, shouting directions to others. I recognized the woman now; she was my own foreign costume designer, Alicia Borogovoce. She was Italian, I believed. I've never met a foreigner before. I admired Alicia's high cheekbones, beautiful glossy dark hair, and semi-tanned skin as I followed Alicia to the back changing room.

"In!" Alicia threw me into the dressing room and helped me strip and pull on my stage outfit.

Faintly, I heard Kyousuke outside…

"As you might know, Illusion Night Club is now using singers in addition to DJs. After all, why listen to the same song over and over again by the same person when you can hear some _verrry_ hot girls singing the same song with _sexxyy_ back-up dancers? Who agrees with me?" Kyousuke shouted.

A series of "Yeah"s were heard.

"First up is Sexy Rosalie, enjoy!"

I turned my attention back to Alicia. "I'm surprised… I thought for sure that this dress would be a little tight on you… it fits perfectly; maybe it's a little big! Nice diet, girl!" She held out her palm for me to high-five it.

I smiled weakly and slapped one. I didn't bother to tell her about the meager "diet" that Mom and I lived on for so long. Soon, I heard a different version of "I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry being sung.

The red-haired girl that I saw on the first day, Rosalie, changed all the "girls" in the lyrics into "boys". In a way, it actually worked. The crowd was eating her up. She totally _purred_ through the whole song.

I breathed deeply. I've never done something as risky as this before, and honestly, it felt scary. Really scary… there was no way, absolutely _no way_ that the crowd will like me. After all, they wanted girls like Sexy Rosalie. Skye Kandi was definitely not sexy.

Before I knew it, applause was heard and I could hear the tapping of Rosalie's stilettos as she sauntered backstage. She winked at me playfully. "Good luck… you'll be needing it."

I nodded in thanks and rolled my shoulders back five times.

I looked at my reflection one last time. My stiff braids were now replaced with luscious auburn ringlets that gleamed and bounced. I had clip-on silver dangling heart-earrings… my ears weren't pierced yet. My eyes were very dark and heavily lidded.

I turned around. My red mini dress clung to my body in a way I didn't want it to. It showed off _way_ too much of my naked body shape! I blushed at the thought. I glanced uneasily at my fake, extended, bright-red painted nails. I slipped off my red Christian Louboutins and gasped as I found that I already had a hole in my black fishnet tights. I sighed as I slipped my open-toed pumps back on.

"SKYE! _You're up, for God's sake!_" Chidori hissed, pushing me towards the side.

"…new face… Skyyyyyyye _Kandii!_" Kyousuke rumbled. I lifted my chin up and plastered a smile onto my face. I walked towards the center of the stage, blinking uneasily at the sudden bright spotlight.

Kyousuke handed the microphone to me. I nodded nervously.

_Come on, baka, we've rehearsed this many times!_ I thought to myself.

"En…joy your night!" I fake-beamed. I nodded to Toushiro, who was sitting in his seat as usual in the back.

I heard the rustling of the skimpy outfits of my back-up dancers. Hell, they were wearing red bras, thongs, and skimpy, shredded Hawaiian-like jean skirts.

Then, the music started.

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

Music flowed throughout the club. Natsume grabbed another random girl from a boy and started dancing with her. The girl, like all the ones he played, looked flustered and embarrassed, but otherwise guiltily happy. They'd always throw apologetic glances at their dates, wearing faces that said "I-hate-this-I'm-being-taken-against-my-will-bye-bye!"

It wasn't before somebody started singing, did Natsume notice that Skye Kandi was currently up on stage. He glanced up at the stage and gazed at the girl.

_Sometimes the way that you act makes me wonder  
What I am to you  
Sometimes I can't stand the way that I'm acting  
To be part of the things you do_

_Skye Kandi…_ Natsume led the random girl closer to the stage; he wanted to get a better look…

The girl's voice was whispery and breathy, opposite of Sex Rose or whatever her name is, from before. The girl he was dancing with didn't want to go up to the front, she kept on dragging him back towards the back, wanting more—_tch_—"privacy".

Natsume ignored her impulses and forcefully pushed her towards the front.

_  
Often I've asked you for too much of your time  
Like I'm stealing  
And when I dream of the fear that you're leaving  
I reach out  
Oh, baby then you_

Natsume's eyes widened with shock. He finally got a good look at the girl. Brunette hair, wide chocolate eyes, _damn_, _how could he have forgotten?_

"Polka-dots…" Natsume remembered the girl who kicked him in the shins are a response to a fierce—_fine, _forceful—make-out session at Ruka's party.

_Well, she was Ruka's date, after all…_ Natsume thought. But then again, though he would never admit it to Ruka, it would hurt him too much, Natsume was one hundred percent sure that he could steal any of Ruka's dates in a couple of seconds.

_Though I would never try to… that was an exception, with Polka-dots. I was drunk. _

Then again, he got drunk usually, and never made-out with Ruka's dates, or had he? Oh well, Natsume didn't remember.

_Mmm, oh yeah…_

Her lips slowly formed into a sexy smile. Polka-dots' hips swayed a little bit. His eyes were glued to her legs, which were covered by those awful, distracting fishnets. He wanted to tear them off! Natsume almost shivered—ew, _shiver_? What kind of man would _shiver_?—when Polka-dots giggled mysteriously, and flirtatiously.

_So many times have I asked you to tell me  
That I'm your girl  
Time after time I have needed a reason  
Just to get inside your world  
So many times have I asked you to ask me  
How it feels to love_

_  
And when this love seems the only conclusion  
That I'm guilty of  
Oh, baby then you_

Polka's hands ran from her shoulders and all the way down to her waist, where they rested. She winked in the rough direction of Natsume.

"Yea, baby!"

"Sexylicious!"

Natsume grew irritated from the continuous shouts from the members of the club.

_Put your loving arms around me  
And you whisper to me when you  
Put your loving arms around me  
And inside your arms I'm burning  
Put your loving arms around me  
And you whisper to me when you  
And inside your arms I'm burning_

_I'm burning, inside your arms I'm burning..._

Polka's hands were wrapped around her chest, holding her tight. She closed her eyes in a way that made Natsume curious. Who the hell was she thinking of? Who's holding her in her mind?

_Sometimes the way that you act makes me wonder  
What I am to you  
Sometimes I can't stand the way that I'm acting  
To be part of the things you do  
Often I've asked you for too much of your time  
Like I'm stealing  
And when I dream of the fear that you're leaving  
I reach out_

Her voice echoed off the walls. Natsume found that he was not dancing anymore, he was just standing there. The girl he was dancing with pouted. "Hey, let's go to the back…"

But Natsume shrugged her off. "Go away, fatso."

She burst into tears, but Natsume couldn't hear her sobs because of the loud instrumental of the song just picked up.

_So many times have I asked you to tell me  
That I'm your girl  
Time after time I have needed a reason  
Just to get inside your world  
So many times have I asked you to ask me  
How it feels to love  
And when this love seems the only conclusion  
That I'm guilty of  
Oh, baby then you_

_Put your loving arms around me  
And you whisper to me when you  
Put your loving arms around me_

Polka finished singing and smiled shyly, avoiding everybody's eyes as she mumbled, "Thanks for listening," into the microphone. Then, she teetered off the stage.

Natsume shoved other people out of the way as he, too, made his way backstage…

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I was bombarded with confetti as I walked backstage. I smiled when I saw the faces of Chidori and Alicia, whose hands were filled with confetti, ready to throw some more in my face.

"CONGRATULATIONS!" They both shouted, along with everybody else. Of course, most people said: "_Omedetou!" _like a regular Japanese civilian should say, but, of course, Alicia, the foreigner shouted: "CONGRRRRRRRRATULATIONS!" while trilling her _r'_s in a very impressive way.

I squealed and ran to them, forming a group hug. "Thank you so much!"

The celebration didn't last long though. Before I knew it, squeals and heavy footsteps announced a visitor backstage…

"Mr. Kiyono!" I gasped. "And Mr. Akira and Mr. Kyousuke!"

Toushiro strided over to me and smiled. "Call me Toushiro, Skye."

I nodded frantically. "H-how was the performance?"

Toushiro's smile grew wider, but it was Akira who answered, "Absolutely fantastic! Amazing for a debut. Skye Kandi is _in_."

I giggled nervously. "Really?"

The three nodded. "We'll have to show you a video of your debut sometime. You included a couple dance motions that weren't in our rehearsal…" Kyousuke winked at me.

I blushed. "Oh… well… things change…" I mumbled.

Toushiro nodded and patted my back. "Get ready for the next song; you're up after two people."

My grin turned into a frown.

"Mr. Toushiro… have you forgotten my conditions?" I asked nervously.

He narrowed his eyebrows. "Is there something the matter?" He snapped his fingers, and Akira stepped up and handed him a piece of paper—my contract.

"It should say that I'm only going to sing one song per night…"

Toushiro's eyes darted back and forth across the paper. Then, he pulled his mouth into a smile. "Oh, I think you're mistaken. Read." He flipped the paper over for me to see and pointed at a spot.

I read: "Mikan Sakura's Condition Number Two: 'Second, I will only sing once every night'."

I glanced up at him, confused. "E-exactly… 'Once every night'! Is there a misunderstanding?"

Toushiro raised his eyebrows. "Precisely my point. Get going, you're singing another song soon." He turned around to leave.

"But, wait! It clearly states on the contract that I will only sing _once_ every night!"

Toushiro stopped and turned around, giving me a glare. "_No _singer only sings one song and leaves! By your terms 'singing once' that does _not_ mean singing only _one song_! I could have you on the stage without having a break, singing _two_ songs! But I'm giving you a break." He thrust his finger in the direction of the audience. "The audience is demanding an encore!"

I felt anger slowly build up now. "Well, that doesn't have anything to do with me! It said on the contract!" I grabbed my purse and stomped off to the dressing room, but a hand closed on my wrist.

I turned around angrily and suddenly…

This felt like déjà vu.

I glared at Toushiro angrily. "You _dare_—" I shrieked. I stopped and widened my eyes as Toushiro raised his hand to slap me, when a voice suddenly growled:

"Get your hands off her."

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"Natsume! We shouldn't be here, where are you going?" Ruka shouted at Natsume halfway up the stairs.

Natsume ignored him as he continued his way up. Suddenly, he heard a loud shriek and hurried through the long strand of beads that served as a door of the backstage for prying eyes.

His mouth parted a little bit as he saw a man raise his hand, ready to strike Mikan. Natsume growled under his breath before saying, "Get your hands off her."

The man whirled around with anger and surprise. Natsume was shocked to find out that it was the club's manager, Toushiro Kiyono.

"Natsume! My long-time customer!" He turned back to Mikan, gave her a menacing glare, and then threw her to the ground. She landed painfully on the ground, her head crashing into a rack full of clothes hanging on hangers, causing a huge ruckus.

Natsume saw Mikan slowly push herself up, while wiping her mouth, which was bleeding a little bit. Tears brimming in her eyes, she lifted her head. Natsume and Mikan's eyes met for the first time since the party. However, Mikan immediately looked away.

Ruka, who Natsume just realized was right behind him, gasped, probably noticing Mikan's bad state.

"Natsume Hyuuga!" Toushiro held out his hands with a broad smile. "Mr. Ruka Nogi!" he added, noticing the blonde behind Natsume. "What brings you backstage? Surely we can discuss whatever needs to be discussed outside…?"

Toushiro turned around to Chidori. "Get her ready for the next song."

"No."

The trembling voice was barely heard over the noise, but everybody heard her.

"_What did you just say_?" Toushiro said slowly.

"No…" Mikan hiccupped. "NO! I'm _not_ singing one more song! Its 10:55 PM already, I need to get back home before eleven! _Please…_" Mikan begged.

"You can go home when you sing that encore. The sooner you stop moping, the sooner you'll get gone," Toushiro said coldly.

"No! I won't sing another song, I _told you that already_!" Mikan shrieked.

Toushiro snapped his fingers. Six men dressed in black tuxedos, sunglasses, and black leather shoes burst into the room, forming a line in front of Toushiro.

"You're staying until you sing that encore, Skye Kandi." Toushiro turned around to leave, but suddenly Natsume felt a sudden bubbling of anger inside him.

Next thing Natsume knew, his mouth was opening and he said, "She's not."

Toushiro stopped and turned around in surprise. "I beg your pardon?"

"She's not going to sing that encore," Natsume said.

Toushiro blinked in shock. "I'm afraid, Mr. Hyuuga, that what my singers do are not your decision."

"I know that," Natsume said coolly. "But you're being unfair."

Toushiro narrowed his eyes. "Maybe you're having too much to drink, Mr. Hyuuga… please, let's talk outside at my table…"

"I'm not fucking drunk!" Natsume growled.

Toushiro sighed and rubbed his temples. "Guards, escort Mr. Natsume and Ruka out and Skye Kandi to her make-up table. Now."

A man closed in on Natsume but he punched him in the face and the man fell over with a bloody nose. Other men, suddenly noticing that Natsume was dangerous, _very_ dangerous, ran over to Natsume and threw punches at him. Some punches made contact with Natsume's stomach, but Natsume punched them all out a minute later.

"NATSUME! You're making… fucking… trouble… again!" Ruka flailed his arms, around, punching everything blindly. He was not the best fighter, actually. Natsume couldn't help grinning as he watched his best friend trip over a table, actually causing two of the guards to fall.

Only when somebody punched him in the face did Natsume turn his attention to Mikan, who was trying to bite the man who was dragging her across the floor, to her table.

Natsume leaped over the mound of clothes and knocked over chairs and threw a chair at the man, who crumpled on the ground.

Mikan turned her terrified eyes to Natsume. "Y-You're hurt…" she reached out hesitantly to his face.

Natsume looked away, brushing his hair out of his eyes. "It's nothing." Mikan opened her mouth, but was interrupted by the coming of more guards. _Many_ more guards.

Natsume's heart dropped, and so did Ruka's. Natsume tried to take out as many men as possible, but it was useless. Ruka wasn't doing very well on his own, either. It seemed like his luck had run out; he now had a black-eye.

"STOP IT!" A high-pitched shriek came out of Mikan's mouth. Everybody turned to her. Mikan had tears streaming down her face, ruining her mascara. "Stop it…" she whispered. "I'll sing the encore, just let them go!"

The guards let go of Natsume and Ruka. Natsume stood up slowly and winced. Ruka stumbled around the room for a mirror to see exactly how bad his face now looked with a black-eye.

Toushiro sighed. "You look like a mess, how can you go out and sing now?" He sighed again. "Go home." He ran his hands through his black hair. "I lost my temper. But, really, you should've stated your conditions clearer." He fumbled around his pockets for a cigar. "I'll change the contract. Go home. It's 11:30 already."

Mikan nodded feebly. She glanced at Natsume and Ruka thankfully and slowly trudged to the dressing room.

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

I pushed open the grand double doors and stepped out into the parking lot. It was amazing how many people were still out there, moving as if it were day. I would've never known about the night life if I didn't take this job. I opened my wallet and marveled at how heavy it was.

It was the first time it was ever that full. But I wasn't paying attention to the green cash; I was awed by a slip of paper.

A check. A check for 1085 dollars. _One thousand eighty-five dollars_. My month's pay. "Wow…" I whispered.

I counted my tips for the day for the first time. Twenty dollars in total for tips.

Another _wow_ escaped from my lips. I placed the money and check carefully back in my wallet and wrapped my arms around my sides. It was a cold night, and I had to walk all the way home.

Oh _okay_, I admit it, I actually earned 120 dollars in tips, but Akira and Kyousuke demanded that I give up 100 dollars to pay for the ruckus _I _caused backstage. Jeez! It wasn't my fault! But I gave in because I didn't want another fight to break out.

Suddenly, a hand tapped my shoulder. I spun around and saw Ruka, grinning.

I wanted to giggle because of how funny he looked with a black-eye, but stopped myself in remembrance that he got into a fight because of me.

"Are you alright?" I asked him.

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Thank you so much, Ruka… for saving me."

Ruka grinned sheepishly but shook his head. "You should give your thanks to Natsume, not me. He was the one that ran backstage after you sang."

I blinked. "Really?"

Ruka nodded again.

Coincidentally, at the next second, Natsume stepped out from the club and turned up his collar at the chilly wind. He waved his cell phone in Ruka's face. "Your mother called me. She said you didn't pick up." Natsume lowered his voice. "She sounded pissed."

Ruka's face immediately whitened. "Holy… I forgot I had a marriage interview today!" Ruka fumbled his pockets for his cell phone. "Natsume, take Mikan home! I-I got to go! Take the car, I'll ask my chauffeur!"

Ruka whipped out his cell phone with lightning speed and dashed away.

I hunched my shoulders up. _Next time, _I thought, _I need to remember to bring a hat and a scarf._

Suddenly, Natsume reached towards my face. I immediately felt my cheeks burn.

_What does he want? Another kiss again?_ I thought. But I didn't do anything but blush furiously. I felt like I was going to explode… damn, I was rooted to the spot! Stupid legs… can't… move…

"You should turn your collar up," Natsume said. He lifted mine up. "And let your hair down. It's warmer that way."

My eyes widened as he pulled off the elastic band on my hair. He handed it to me. "Thanks…" I really didn't know what to say.

"You should've known that earlier, stupid."

I flinched angrily. "Hey! Well, whatever!" I huffed indignantly, but he wasn't listening. Natsume was already walking far away from me.

"Wait up!" I shouted, trying to run unsuccessfully in pumps. I almost caught up with him with he suddenly stopped, causing my face to slam into his back.

"OW! Why are you stop—" I cried before I saw what was in front of me.

Natsume raised his chin and leaned on the car. "Get in."

"This—this… this is _yours_?" I asked, finally finding my voice back. My eyes were glued to the yellow and red car.

"Mine. Customized." Natsume looked annoyed. "Get in," he repeated.

I didn't obey. "But… it's a Lamborghini!" I cried.

He raised his eyebrow. "So? God damn it girl, just get in!"

I walked slowly towards the passenger seat and opened the door. I squeaked and jumped back when the door _rose up_. I could _sense_ Natsume rolling his eyes behind my back. He ended up pushing me in onto the seat.

"Don't worry, I'll go slowly." Natsume smirked as he slammed the car door and hit the gas.

**X**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

"OH MY GOD! STOOOOP!" I screamed, much to the driver's annoyance.

"Shut the hell up, will you? I'm going as slow as I can!"

I clutched the dashboard like a lifeline. "You're going ninety five miles an hour!"

"I'll only go to eighty if you tell me your full name," was Natsume's calm reply.

I sighed exasperatedly. "We've been though this already, Natsume Hyuuga! Just stop asking pesky questions and _drive slower! _Anyway, 80 isn't slow enough!"

"Not until you tell me."

"What are you going to do with it? Stalk me?"

"Why would I stalk _you_?"

"Then why do you want to know my name?"

"You're interesting, that's all."

I stopped. _What the hell is up with that? 'I'm interesting?' _

"I'm not your specimen, you bastard. Don't think I forgot about you almost raping me at the party." I hissed, getting angrier by the second.

"Rape? It was just a kiss, that's all." To my horror, he took his eyes off the road and smirked at me. "You should feel lucky that you got kissed by me."

I felt like hyperventilating. "_What_?" My mouth dropped open in disbelief. "_LUCKY? _And _eyes on the road, please!_"

He continued smirking at me. Instead of obeying my plea, he lifted on hand off the steering wheel and ran it through his dark hair. "I _am_ the most popular bachelor in the state, and possibly country, after all."

"TWO HANDS ON THE STEERING WHEEL AND EYES ON THE ROAD, FOR GOD'S SAKE!" I yelled.

He made a sound that sounded like a chuckle for a half-second before putting his hands back on the wheel and shifting his tantalizing eyes to the road in front of him. "Why the pissed off look?" he asked.

I gritted my teeth before lifting my chin up, folding my arms, and totally ignoring him.

We didn't talk to each other for a couple of minutes. Finally, he broke the silence. "You've got to give me directions to your house, Miss Skye Kandi, otherwise known as Mysterious Mikan."

I forced myself to remain serious. "Turn left."

He slowed down when we came close to the Sakura mansion, to my dismay. "Keep going," I said immediately.

"Do you know the Sakura's?" he asked me.

"No." I replied right away. "You?"

He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. "I know them."

"Oh."

He seemed to have noticed my sudden change in tone. "You sure you don't know them?"

"Yes," I replied coldly. "Keep going."

He made no comment as he pulled up to my house. His eyes widened for a moment, but did not make any comment as I climbed out of his car. He got out as well.

"Oh… thanks for bringing me back," I mumbled almost inaudibly.

"Hn," he grunted, looking at a tree intently.

"And… thanks for saving me back there. At the club. Ruka told me that you were there first."

He shifted his eyes to me. "Tch. It was nothing."

"Anyway… thanks," I muttered.

"I was only back there because I wanted to tell you how you sucked out there," he said nonchalantly.

I inhaled sharply as I glared at him, clenching my fists. "Well, I know I did well, so I don't need your opinion!"

He just stared at me.

"What?" I touched my face. "Do I have something on my face?"

Suddenly, he grabbed my arm and leaned in closer and closer to my face.

I think I squeaked, but I wasn't sure. My heart was pounding too fast, and I knew my face looked like a tomato.

My breathing became ragged as I choked out, "W-what are you…"

_His face is too close! _I screamed in my brain, but I closed my eyes automatically, ready for a…

"Perverted kid."

My eyes snapped open as I saw Natsume standing by his car again, his smirk visible even in the dark light. I clenched my teeth in anger and embarrassment as I spun around so I didn't have to see his ugly face.

"You can go now!" I called out loudly.

Silence.

"I _said_, you can go now!" I called out, a little louder than last time.

Still, nothing.

I spun around angrily, ready to shout at him…

But then, I realized nobody was there.

Natsume was gone, with his beautiful Lamborghini.

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_**Dear Diary,**_

_**Today is November 5**__**th**__**, 2004. It's currently around 12:00, midnight. For some reason, I'm always writing on you around midnight. A habit of mine, I guess. Anyway… my first day of work! If you call that work, really. Being a bar singer… it's no Hollywood, and it's not the streets either. I don't really know how to describe it. I'll tell Mom about the salary I earned, but I need to think of a good lie. Perhaps I'll say that I got a job as a… computer person? Nah, too high-tech for me. An accountant? God forbid, Mom knows I hate math! A reporter? Actually… a reporter might work. I'll just say that it's for a small local newspaper. But I don't think reporters get paid so well… or maybe they get paid way more than I do? Uggggh I don't know! And my mind's too sluggish today to even think about all the complicated things. **_

_**Anyway, back to the singing: I think I sang well, but I'm not quite sure… after my song, I got into an argument with Mr. Toushiro. It was absolutely horrible, I had a sudden feeling of déjà vu when he was about to slap me. It was frightening, until Ruka and his perverted roommate, Natsume, burst in and sort of… saved me. I'm really thankful for them, and I wonder if God put them into the world for me to help me beat the Sakura's? As I mentioned earlier in you, Diary, Ruka is such a gentleman… and he is so handsome, and prince charming-like. His light blue eyes shine so radiantly when he smiles… on contrary to that perverted boy, Natsume. My God, I hate him! I hate everything about him: how he's rich, how he has a cool car, how he is a playboy, his snobby attitude, his smirks, his perverted-ness, his eyes, his hair, his skin, his smell…**_

_**EVERYTHING!! **_

_**Oh my God, I think I just knocked over something… I hope Mom didn't wake up! I'll write in you when I have time tomorrow or who knows when. Bye! – MS**_

I carefully put down my pen and stuffed my precious diary underneath my pillow. I climbed into bed and fell asleep.

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_The chapter's actually, really short, in my chapter standards, but honestly, I had to end it here. The next chapter will take place a few months later in the story, and I don't feel like going: "Okay, it's been three months since Mikan Sakura got into a fight with her boss. Everything has been perfectly fine since then. Now, this and this happens…"_

_I just don't really like that. So I'm cutting things right here and right now. Be patient, please! But I updated kind of fast this time. Be proud, too. XD_

_Special thanks to my beta-reader: xSTICKYxNOTEx_

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks or so, because I have to update my other story, __The Living Dead__, as well as this one. I reply to all of my reviews, so if you have any questions, please note them in your review. _

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message, and I'll definitely be glad. :) Nyaaar I'm tired…_

-Mikarin/Snowflaked Angel

_**Editor's Note: **__The name Skye Kandi is so cute! I love this story, maybe even better than __The Living Dead__. It's close, but I think I like this one more. I can't wait to read the next chapter! _


	6. Chapter 6: The Truth At Last

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

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To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_**Previously:**_

_Anyway, back to the singing: I think I sang well, but I'm not quite sure… after my song, I got into an argument with Mr. Toushiro. It was absolutely horrible, I had a sudden feeling of déjà vu when he was about to slap me. It was frightening, until Ruka and his perverted roommate, Natsume, burst in and sort of… saved me. I'm really thankful for them, and I wonder if God put them into the world for me to help me beat the Sakura's? As I mentioned earlier in you, Diary, Ruka is such a gentleman… and he is so handsome, and prince charming-like. His light blue eyes shine so radiantly when he smiles… on contrary to that perverted boy, Natsume. My God, I hate him! I hate everything about him: how he's rich, how he has a cool car, how he is a playboy, his snobby attitude, his smirks, his perverted-ness, his eyes, his hair, his skin, his smell…_

_EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! _

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▬_Chapter Six: The Truth at Last▬_

_**Dear Diary,**_

_**It's midnight! Time to write in you. I'm sorry I've been neglecting you for one whole month, but… things are looking up. I've been earning a lot of tips and I've been getting pretty famous—I mean, infamous—too. Illusion's business is absolutely booming, and my relationship with Toushiro, Akira, and Kyousuke has also been better than ever. It's almost as if the slapping incident months ago never happened. I'm so happy…**_

_**Of course, Mom still thinks I'm a reporter, and I want to keep things that way. If she ever finds out… ugh, I don't want to even think about it! But speaking of Mom, today, I went shopping with Mom, to buy us clothes. I'm sure it was her first time being in a shopping mall! Well, at least she acted like it was. She was squinting at the bright lights and gasping at the bright, bold colors that were in style right now. I bought her some shoes. I wanted to get her heels, but Mom refused to try any shoes that were fifty dollars or above. But jeez, there were NO heels that were under fifty dollars! The cheapest black ones were sixty nine dollars. After searching store after store, I found a pair of cute black Butterfly slides that were forty dollars. I also secretly bought a pair of gold BCBGirls sandals for Mom. I told her they were forty nine dollars when they were actually sixty nine. Oops. :)**_

_**Anyhow, life is going well at home. All our bills are payable and we even bought some furniture like tables and chairs. We bought some paint and painted the puke yellow walls to baby blue (my favorite color) and light sea-green (Mom's favorite color). It looks beautiful now. Almost as beautiful as Mom is now. Mom smiles all the time now and she even laughs! I've almost never heard her laugh before in my entire life. This thought cemented my conscience: getting the bar singer job was the right thing to do.**_

_**Ruka and Natsume are the big tippers for me, really. If somebody tips a ten, then Natsume and Ruka would tip a thirty. I am thankful, but a little embarrassed how much they are doing for me. Really, I'm starting to feel like I'm in too much debt to them… and I don't like to be in debt to anybody, especially the you-know-who's.**_

_**Speaking of the you-know-who's, I must ask Mom how much money we got from them. I'm planning on returning every cent they ever gave us. But then again, I don't want to rouse up any trouble so that they will come knocking at our doors again. Ugh… still, I want to return their filthy money. We don't need it. We're doing fine on our own.**_

_**I'm tired, I don't want to have dark circles under my eyes for my performance, or else Chidori will use that foul-smelling powder on me again.**_

_**Sweet dreams! – MS**_

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I grinned confidently at Table Sixteen as I walked on to the stage, but knew Natsume and Ruka couldn't see me because the stage was pitch-black. It was all part of the show, though.

Bam! The lights came on. If I hadn't practiced, I would've fell off the stage due to my shock.

_Ahhh  
Boy walkin' the spot he so fresh and (uh-huh)  
He got what he needs impressin' (uh-huh)  
Just look at the way that he dressin' (uh-huh)  
Ain't no question chicks like oh_

_Girl walk in the spot she stop traffic (uh-huh)  
She blowin' your mind with her asset (uh-uh)  
So Jessica Alba fantastic  
Instant classic boys like oh_

_Baby, I can see us movin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us touchin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us kissin' like that (like that)  
We don't need no more that he said, she said_

_Baby, I can see us movin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us touchin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us kissin like that (like that)  
We don't need no more that he said, she said_

_He said girl you winning  
She said boy where you've been at  
Stop talkin' lets get with it  
Just like that they_

_He said you're amazing  
She said then why you waiting?  
No more deliberating  
Wat'cha doin' lets get to it  
Just like that they_

_Uh_

_Boy acting as if there's no pressure  
He'd do anything to get with her  
He say anything to convince her  
Money spent to diamonds sent her_

_Girl playing it cool but she's with it  
She loving the fact she's gifted  
Everything that he do she gets lifted  
Feels so wicked loving like oh_

_Baby, I can see us movin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us touchin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us kissin' like that (like that)  
We don't need no more that he said, she said_

_Baby, I can see us movin like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us touchin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us kissin' like that (like that)  
We don't need no more that he said, she said_

_He said girl you winning  
She said boy where you've been at? (where you've been)  
Stop talkin' lets get with it  
Just like that they_

_He said your amazing  
She said then why you waiting?  
No more deliberating  
Wat'cha doin' lets get to it  
Just like that they_

_One night with you  
Boy, just one night with you  
All the things we could do  
Everyday I think of  
One night with you  
No one else but us two  
All our dreams would come true  
If we just get together! (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

_Baby, I can see us movin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us touchin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us kissin' like that (like that)  
We don't need no more that he said, she said_

_Baby, I can see us movin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us touchin' like that (like that)  
Baby, I can see us kissin' like that (like that)  
We don't need no more that he said, she said_

_Uh, what you waiting for?_

_He said girl you winning  
She said boy where you've been at?  
Stop talkin' lets get with it  
Just like that they_

_He said you're amazing  
She said then why you waiting?  
No more deliberating  
Wat'cha doin' lets get to it  
Just like that they_

_Give it to me baby!_

_You're gonna like it (uh)  
You're gonna want it (uh)  
You're gonna like it (uh)  
We don't need no more that he said she said  
You're gonna like it (yeah)  
You're gonna want it (you're gonna want it)  
You're gonna like it (yeah, yeah)  
We don't need no more that he said she said_

Wolf-whistles and shouts of the usual, "SEXYLICIOUS!" and "Give it to me, baby!" were heard. I plastered a smile on her face as I walked off the stage.

The minute I got backstage, my smile disappeared. "I _hate_ Ashley Tisdale! Ugh, why did Toushiro make me sing that? Now all the boys will think that…" I blushed.

Rosalie put her hand on my shoulder. "It's all part of the business, _honey_. You know, if you accompany guests after the show, you'd be racking up more money than—"

"No," I said firmly. "No accompanying."

Rosalie sighed. "Whatever you think is best, _darling_." She walked to the changing rooms and disappeared.

Suddenly, a guard trying to carry too many things at once appeared at the door and set a bunch of flowers, boxes, and other gifts in the corner of the room. He wiped the sweat off his brow. "Gifts for Miss Skye Kandi," he said before running out to get more gifts.

I sighed. Today there were more gifts than usual, probably because those stupid song lyrics I just sang.

_Seriously! 'Boy, just one night with you, all the things we can do' and 'give it to me baby!' could be seriously misleading, _I thought angrily, tearing out the elastic hair bands in my hair.

"Easy, Mikan, you need to get used to it," Chidori called out from the other side of the room, doing another girl's make-up. A strip dancer, I believed.

I changed out of my stage clothes and shook my long hair wildly. I yawned and stretched as I slung my bag on my shoulder. I stepped out of the back exit of the club and yawned again.

"It's cold again…" I hunched up my shoulders and turned up the collar of my wooly jacket.

"It's winter, if you haven't noticed." I could suddenly feel hot breath on my now-blushing cheeks.

"_Natsume!"_ She whined, turning around.

"Natsume, you are _such_ a flirt!" Ruka laughed, his words slightly slurring.

Natsume snapped his fingers once. "Maybe you should learn from me, Ruka," he said jokingly, swaying a little unsteadily on his feet.

"Drunk _again_, gentleman and ungentleman?" I scolded, putting my hands on my hips. I sighed.

"My pleasure today, Mi—_hic!—_kan, that's why," Ruka grinned, holding out his hand to me. I smiled and took it. It was a little inside joke, but whenever Ruka said that, it meant that they would be taking me home through Ruka's cars, which was usually a limo. Whenever Natsume grabbed her roughly, then it meant that they would be taking Natsume's Lamborghini.

Ruka's words were slurred all over the place, but it was Natsume that I was worried about: he seemed unable to balance himself. He kept on walking everywhere.

"Natsume! Where are you walking to? We're over _here_!" I stomped my foot as he changed course.

I rolled my eyes. "Drunk boys. Why do _I_ have to take care of them?"

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_**Dear Diary,**_

_**Something just came up to me. Something brilliant, absolutely brilliant. You know how Ruka and Natsume are always badgering me (well, mostly Natsume) to tell them my full name? Well… I think I can. Tell them my name. Or what should be my name. Not Mikan S.**_

_**Mikan Azumi.**_

_**It's weird, huh? But I think it might work. I mean, technically, it's true, since I am no longer (not that I ever was) part of the S. family. And Mom was never married to that man.**_

_**Mikan Azumi. Initials: M.A.**_

_**I like it already.**_

_**Bye! – M.A. :)**_

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"Listen, Mochu…"

"No, _you_ listen to _me, _Ruka Nogi. What have you been up to everyday now? I mean, it was one thing that you were never available every Friday and Saturday, but now you guys are _never_ available at night! What the _hell_ is going on that you're keeping from your mates?"

"Jeez, Mochu—"

"Because I will keep on bothering you until you tell me what the fuck is going on. This has been going on for over a month already! C'mon, man, what's this whole secret thing?"

"Mochu. Listen. Natsume and I are just busy, that's all, it's nothing…"

"Ha! I knew it, another fucking excuse. I'm sorry, but you've used that one too many times. How about trying another _more believable_ one for a change, hmm, Ruka?"

Ruka was silent. He was currently pacing in the living room, his cell phone turned onto speaker so that Natsume, who was lounging on the couch, could hear every word.

"You there, Ruka?"

Natsume grabbed the phone out of Ruka's hand and growled into it. "Fuck off, Mochu. Stay out of our business, or else you'll pay for it." Then, he hit END.

Ruka sighed and fell onto the other couch and sank into it. "How long do you think we'll be able to keep the secret, Natsume? This is getting harder and harder… especially _now, _sincewe're going to Illusion almost every night!"

Natsume didn't seem bothered. "Just keep making excuses."

"Why don't _you_ make up excuses for them for a change? Why do _I—_"

"Shut up, somebody's at the door." Natsume pushed himself off the couch and flung the door open.

It was Youichi.

And he was wearing the biggest smirk in the entire world.

"Take me there, and I will tell nobody."

Natsume glared at Youichi. "Take you where?"

"Where you go every night, Natsume." Youichi cocked an eyebrow."Illusion Night Club."

Natsume and Ruka's mouths dropped open. Natsume was the one who recovered first. "Man, you're underage. You're not allowed."

Youichi crossed his arms. "And you're saying _you_ are of age? Natsume, you're nineteen. And so are _you_, Ruka."

"Youichi, you're sixteen." Natsume growled.

"Only three years away from you," Youichi said dismissively. "Stop worrying about me. Worry about what will happen when I spill your secret." He grinned.

_Little bastard…_ Natsume thought in his mind.

"Your parents will kill me."

"Just don't tell them."

Ruka stepped in. "One time only. And we're delivering you back if you're kicked out."

Youichi grinned. "I won't get kicked out."

"Youichi, _somebody's_ going to notice that you aren't over twenty one."

"I'll be convincing. And nobody noticed _you're_ not over twenty one either."

Ruka sighed in defeat.

"We're bringing him, Natsume."

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Youichi paced around in his room excitedly. _Wait until I tell my friends about this… in a club at sixteen years old! _He thought. He had been excited ever since he blackmailed Natsume and Ruka two days ago.

He took a quick look around his spacious room before punching the air in victory. Nobody, absolutely _nobody_, was allowed to see him so excited. People can only see his aloof and cool side.

Still… Natsume and Ruka haven't told him when they were going to let him come with them.

_You ready?! Let's go!  
Yeah, for those of you that want to know what we're all about  
It's like this y'all (c'mon!)_

_This is ten percent luck, twenty percent skill  
Fifteen percent concentrated power of will…_

Youichi picked up his ringing phone and dove on his bed. "Yo."

"We're coming over."

"What? Now?" Youichi leapt to his feet.

"Bye." Natsume hung up.

Youichi stood there, listening to the dial tone for a couple seconds before hanging up as well. He smoothed his hair. It was going to be tonight.

Youichi glanced at the clock. It was 8:35 PM. Youichi tore off his stupid formal clothing that his father made him wear and threw on a baggy T-shirt and jeans. He rumpled up his hair before giving himself a quick Axe spray-down.

He struck a pose and glanced at his reflection. He knew he looked handsome, but was it enough to pass for an over-twenty-one-year-old-handsome? Or just a sixteen-year-old-handsome?

He had no time to wonder about that, because the doorbell rang and Youichi jumped down the spiral stairs, three-at-a-time. His mother would yell at him, but he didn't care.

Youichi was almost off the last stair when he realized somebody else already opening the door. He halted when he realized it was his sister.

The door swung open and there stood Natsume and Ruka.

"Hey, Hotaru," Ruka was saying, kissing her hand.

Youichi stepped closer to the door. "Let's go, I'm ready," he said.

Hotaru invited the two boys in. "Are you taking Youichi somewhere?" she said softly.

Natsume and Ruka exchanged glances. "Yeah," Ruka said.

"Where are you going?" Hotaru looked at Natsume.

"A… karaoke bar," Natsume said.

"Oh. That's ni—"

"Excuse me, but can we talk to Youichi in private?" Natsume cut across her.

Hotaru looked at her feet and nodded.

Youichi stood up and guided Natsume and Ruka to his room upstairs.

"Listen, kid. You ready?" Natsume growled.

Youichi nodded a little too excitedly.

"You bring money?" Ruka asked.

"Money? I'm not going to order anything. My mom will kill me," Youichi said, wondering if saying that was a mistake.

"Not for you, for us. You'll be paying for us."

"Oh. Wait." Youichi blinked. "WHAT?" Youichi yelled.

Ruka glanced at Natsume. "Told you he'd blow."

Natsume ignored Ruka. "You'll be paying for our drinks. Usually, we spend about forty to sixty dollars a night. We're only making you pay thirty, though, for the drinks, so cough up."

Youichi just gaped. He wanted to argue, but soon gave up. "Fine. What else would you pay for, other than drinks?"

Ruka tapped his foot impatiently. "Girls, of course."

Youichi coughed nervously. "Awesome."

"Let's go." Natsume swung open the door and there stood Hotaru, her eyes wide and her mouth agape.

"What…?" Natsume froze, and so did Ruka and Youichi.

"Natsume… you're taking Youichi to a _nightclub_?" Hotaru whispered, obviously angry.

"Hotaru, it's not what you think," Natsume said.

"Ruka! How could _you_ let this happen?"

"Whoa, Hotaru, it's _really_ not what you think."

"I _heard_!"

"Sis, drop it." Youchi told the whole story to his sister, including all the blackmailing and rule-breaking.

Hotaru's mouth dropped open as she closed her eyes and muttered a quick word with God. "Youichi. You. Are. _Stupid_! Why…"

Hotaru looked at Natsume and Ruka sternly. "Don't think I won't forgive you guys for letting him in on this."

"Never expected that you would," Natsume smirked.

Hotaru blinked, then turned immediately to Youichi. "I'm going with you."

This time, all three boys shouted, "WHAT?"

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"I can't believe this. Won't your parents notice?" Natsume growled. The four of them were currently lounging on Ruka's limo's spacious backseats. Youichi was stealing from the fridge.

"I told them we were going to a karaoke bar. Exactly what you said to me." Hotaru turned and nudged Youichi. "Stop stealing from the fridge, I'll order you some water when we get there."

"No _way_ am I trading bottled water for _this stuff_!" Youichi pulled out all three colorful bottles. "Sis, can I drink this?" He raised one bottle up.

Hotaru snatched it away from him. "Only when you're twenty one and above."

Natsume and Ruka exchanged a quick glance, wondering how the situation came to _two _of the Sakura's tagging along.

Natsume pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, this is Illusion Night Club. Please press one for club information. Press two for table reservations. Press three for…"

Natsume dialed nine.

_Ring! Ring! Ring!_

"Hell-_oooo_?"

"Give the phone to Skye," Natsume said.

Hotaru looked at Natsume with an unreadable expression.

Somebody sighed. "Hello?"

Natsume perked up at the sound of that clear, sweet voice. "It's me."

"Natsume!" The tired voice immediately raised a few pitches.

"You're going to burst my eardrums, idiot."

Adorable giggles. "Sorry."

"You done with rehearsal?"

"Yup! It's almost show-time, after all. Will you be there?"

"I don't know."

"Why? I… I _want_ you to be there!"

The corners of Natsume's lips turned up a little bit. Hotaru's eyes widened before turning away from Natsume to Ruka.

"Well, if you put it _that_ way, I'll come."

"Will Ruka be there too?"

Natsume's quarter-smile disappeared, fast. "Yeah, he'll be there."

"Great!"

"Listen, we're going to bring two friends over tonight. A girl and a boy."

"Ooh sure! Is it their first time? Are they a couple?" The excited voice chattered.

"It's their first time."

"Cool! Tell them from me that I wish that they will have a good time. Oh wait, no! I'll tell them myself! Yeah! I'll go greet them after I sing, is that okay?"

"Whatever. Don't sound too excited, they're brother and sister."

"Oh! Well, _that_ puts things in a different spotlight! All the same, I'll come and greet them, okay? What are their names? I don't want to mess them up."

"It bugs me why you're so interested. It's Youichi and Hotaru. Youichi's sixteen, and Hotaru is seventeen."

The other end was silent.

"I know they're a bit young, but they blackmailed us to come, so…"

Still silent.

"Skye?"

"You said… their names were Youichi and… Hotaru. Brother and sister."

Natsume felt an unnatural cold beginning to creep over him. "Yeah…?"

"I don't want to see them. Don't bring them here."

Natsume was nerved by the sudden change of her tone. It was now cold, blunt, and razor-edge sharp.

"Why? Do you know them?"

"Don't bring them here. Especially Youichi. But they're all the same, _don't bring them here!_"

"Hey, I still don't get it—"

Mikan had already hung up.

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Natsume and Ruka opened the club doors nervously. Natsume told Ruka all about the conversation when they were alone. Ruka seemed just as nervous and Natsume was.

Youichi and Hotaru were looking around the club with a sense of unease. Perhaps it was the strip dancers that startled them? Or the rowdy club members, some dancing on tables?

Natsume and Ruka did not have time to worry about that.

Ruka bent his head low and murmured, "What should we do? From the sounds of it, Youichi is her ex-boyfriend… they obviously had a rough ending."

Natsume nodded in agreement, stealing a quick glance at Youichi. It seemed a little unlikely that Mikan dated this lanky teenager, but Mikan looked like a teenager too, though older than Youichi.

"I never knew that lanky teenager liked older women," Natsume muttered.

"That's not what to worry about, Natsume! How do we get Youichi and Hotaru _out_ of here?"

"We can't. It's impossible. We're already in." Natsume sighed.

"If all hell breaks loose tonight, don't blame me," Ruka warned.

Natsume was going to shoot back a quick retort, but was interrupted by a gasp.

Natsume swung around, locking eyes with Hotaru who had one hand to her mouth, the other hand pointing at a poster.

A poster of Skye Kandi.

Youichi seemed frozen too. Natsume swore and Ruka slapped his forehead and sighed.

"Youichi… look…" Hotaru whispered. Even though the club was really loud, the other three heard her.

"This… isn't this… _Mikan?_" Hotaru continued, still whispering softly.

Youichi just stared at the paper, but Natsume saw his chest rise up and down in anger. Natsume stepped toward him and put his hand on Youichi's shoulder. "Shake it off, man. Just watch the performance. If you ruin my night, I'll make you pay, and not only with money."

Youichi glared at Natsume but remained silent and allowed himself to be dragged to Table Sixteen.

Hotaru followed, clearly shocked. Ruka trailed behind, still sighing and muttering.

Youichi gripped the table so hard that his knuckles turned white. Natsume and Ruka watched the sudden tenseness between all of them with unease.

_Uh-oh… _they both thought.

A waiter came rushing at them. "What would you like to order today, misters? And Miss Beautiful," he added, giving Hotaru a wink.

Hotaru looked up, startled.

"The usual, only for two," Ruka answered the waiter. Youichi and Hotaru did not argue.

The waiter nodded and walked away, jotting down their orders on his notebook pad.

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Youichi was angry. Oh, yes.

Angry. Big-time.

The moment he saw his half-sister smiling sweetly in a huge poster, he nearly threw-up. "The Popular Sensation: Skye Kandi" it read. Youichi wanted to tear off the poster and rip it up, but Natsume's hand had interrupted him.

Youichi stared at the stage blankly, not really seeing anything. His thoughts were a tornado, going too fast, out of his control, spinning from one thing to another…

Mikan wanted money.

_That's why she chose THIS job?_

Mikan wanted revenge.

_That's why she chose THIS job?_

Mikan wanted independence.

_That's why she chose THIS job?_

Youichi could not believe it. Why _this_ job, out of all? The pay wasn't even good at all! What was his stupid half-sister playing at? Moreover…

Wasn't Natsume on the phone with this "Skye" person on the limo ride?

That meant… Natsume fancied her.

Natsume fancied a bar singer. His half-sister. A bar singer. His half-sister was a bar singer. Natsume fancied his half-sister. Natsume fancied Mikan.

And from the looks of it, Ruka didn't hate Mikan either.

Youichi wanted to gag.

Mikan was getting her revenge, alright. If word got out that a Sakura was a bar singer, that would bring shame on the family name forever. Mikan's form of revenge. _She_ doesn't care about pride of the Sakura! She doesn't even consider herself a Sakura anymore. _She_ doesn't care that she's got a hoard of guys on the go. She's a _bar-singer!_ A singing prostitute! Who knows how many guys she's _done_?

Furthermore… she had two of his closest friends dangling around her filthy finger!

Youichi wanted to shout and swear, but he promised that he would keep his composure. He tried to steer his thoughts to the idea that this was his first club adventure, but Mikan clouded all the happiness away, like she usually did.

He was so immersed in his thoughts that he didn't wake up until he heard a lot of shouts and loud noises. He jerked his head up, realizing the crowd was whooping… it seemed like a sultry prostitute singer called Sexro or something just finished singing.

He shut his eyes and prayed for random things, until suddenly, he heard a man say the keywords:

"Skye Kandi!"

His head jerked up again, but this time his eyes were alert and ears perked. His eyes traveled to the side of the stage, where a girl was coming out…

"YOUICHI!" He suddenly felt to strong pairs of hands pulling him down. He had involuntarily stood up. He struggled against Ruka and Natsume. "_I… want… to KILL HER!"_ he said through his teeth.

"_SHUT UP!_" Ruka yelled at him.

"Hope you have a… _fantastic _night," the girl winked onstage.

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Natsume groaned quietly as a line of three males lined up behind Mikan. Male dancers met only one thing:

Mikan was going to dance with them.

Natsume side-glanced at Youichi, who Ruka was still holding down. Natsume was seated on the outside, blocking Youichi from getting out of his seat.

Natsume looked at Hotaru, whose eyes were wide with horror and… _what?_ Pity? Sadness? Disgust?

Her expressions were always hard to read.

_Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music_

_It's getting late  
I'm making my way over to my favorite place  
I gotta get my body moving  
Shake the stress away  
I wasn't looking for nobody when you looked my way  
Possible candidate, yeah  
Who knew  
That you'd be up in here looking like you do  
You're making staying over here, impossible  
Baby, I must say your aura is incredible  
If you don't have to go, don't_

Natsume's mouth dropped open as Mikan seemed to be dancing sexier than usual. The boys were prowling around her like predators eying up a juicy mouse. It took all his will to prevent himself from sprinting toward the stage and punching their lights out.

If _he_ was having a hard time with this, he wondered how the ex-boyfriend will react. Natsume didn't dare sneak a glance at Youichi, he already knew that Youichi's expression would be _furious_.

Why did she have to dance with boys_ tonight_ out of all nights? The night where her ex-boyfriend was watching her?

_Do you know what you started?  
I just came here to party  
But now we're rocking on the dance floor, actin' naughty  
Your hands around my waist  
Just let the music play  
We're hand in hand, chest to chest and now we're face to face_

_I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the music  
I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the  
Please don't stop the music_

_Baby, are you ready cause it's getting close  
Don't you feel the passion ready to explode?  
What goes on between us no one has to know  
This is a private show_

_Do you know what you started?  
I just came here to party  
But now we're rocking on the dance floor, actin' naughty  
Your hands around my waist  
Just let the music play  
We're hand in hand, chest to chest and now we're face to face_

_I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the music  
I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the  
Please don't stop the music_

_Please don't stop the music_

_Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music_

_I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the music  
I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the  
Please don't stop the music  
_

_I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the music  
I wanna take you away  
Let's escape into the music, DJ let it play  
I just can't refuse it  
Like the way you do this  
Keep on rockin' to it  
Please don't stop the, please don't stop the  
Please don't stop the music_

_Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music  
Please don't stop the music_

"Thanks for listening, have a good night!" Mikan smiled.

Hotaru whimpered and ducked her head under the table. Natsume didn't know what to do. He put his hand on her head in hope of what was a reassuring gesture. Hotaru looked up at him and bit her lip.

Ruka patted Hotaru's hand. "Waiter! Champagne, please." The passing waiter nodded.

Minutes later, a thin glass of yellow champagne arrived. Natsume handed it to Hotaru, who looked at in uncertainly before sipping it.

"It'll make you calm, I promise. It's just champagne," Ruka said.

Natsume looked around, then froze.

"What's wrong, Natsume?" Hotaru asked.

"Where's… Youichi?" Natsume felt the unnatural cold creep over him again.

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Okay, I admit it. I did those extra booty-shakes and winks to piss of my half-brother and half-sister. But that whole male dancing thing was Toushiro's idea, and I did not like it at _all_. It was hard enough to dance alone, but to dance with a group of boys who were looking at me like they wanted to _eat_ me?

I shuddered while I pulled my fake earrings off. During my song, I glanced at Table Sixteen, as usual, and there was Natsume, Ruka and _those_ two.

I hoped they wouldn't tell their parents, but now was not the time to think about it. I had to get home, Mom was waiting.

Before I got to get to the dressing room, however, the beads that served as a door to the backstage rattled, signaling that somebody came in. I turned around hopefully, thinking it was Natsume or Ruka, but it was not.

It was one of _them_.

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Youichi shot up the stairs, non-stop, glad that Natsume and Ruka did not seem to notice his disappearance. He shoved random people out of the way before arriving backstage and bursting through the bead curtains.

She turned around and locked eyes were Youichi, her friendly gaze immediately turning death cold.

Youichi glared at her, not knowing what to say. Suddenly, it came all out. All his thoughts. His "thoughts" came out as cussing though. He swore at her and shouted at her for a full while.

She did not flinch. She did not budge.

Youichi repeated a few words a couple of times, taking time to let the words "slut", "ho", and "bitch" sink in. There were other worse ones too, though, like "daughter of a whore".

Everybody backstage was staring at him, their mouths wide.

Youichi took a deep breath and stopped.

Mikan took a shaky step toward him. Another step. Another. And another.

"How… _dare you!_ _How dare you insult my mother!?_" Mikan shrieked. It was a miracle the mirrors didn't crack.

"You and your mother are a _disgrace _to the Sakura's!" Youichi yelled back.

"How _dare you_ _say that_ when _your_ mother is the whore?! _Who's the whore? Huh, Youichi Sakura? _Your mother never told you how successful she was at driving my mother and me out of the mansion, did she? She blamed something that _was HER fault on my mother!_ You know what happened, Youichi Sakura? _Do you know what happened?_" Mikan fumed. "_YOUR FATHER WHIPPED MY MOTHER. HE WHIPPED HER. _That son of a bitch _whipped_ her! He _steals _her heart, he causes her to be _expelled_ from school, he forced her to _throw _away her education, he _broke_ her heart, he _refuses_ to stand up for her, treats her like an _inferior_, and he _WHIPPED HER!_"

Mikan paused, her mouth wide, taking gulps of air. Youichi heard the shuffling of feet behind him and whipped around. Natsume, Ruka, and Hotaru were standing there. Hotaru looked like she would collapse any second, and Natsume and Ruka were just… blown away.

"Quit this job," Youichi said firmly.

Mikan glared at him. "No, I won't. You can't tell me what to do, Youichi."

"_Quit this job_. Don't make me say it again."

"What will you do to me? _Whip_ me?" Mikan's voice was hard as steel.

Youichi felt anger flaring up inside him. "Quit. The. Job."

Suddenly, a rush of footsteps came into the room and Mikan looked up. Youichi turned around again and there were these creepy looking bodyguards wearing sunglasses and black tuxes.

"Is there a problem here, Skye?" A man with glasses and a cigar stepped forward.

Mikan took a deep breath. "Take him away." She pointed at Youichi.

The guards nodded as they grabbed onto Youichi's arm and pulled. But Youichi refused to be defeated. He struggled, kicked, and yelled.

Soon, it turned it to a fight.

"Youichi!" Hotaru screamed as she watched her brother be punched in the stomach a couple of times. She ran forward to shield her only brother from further harm, but Natsume pulled her back. Hotaru looked at him pleadingly.

Natsume entered the fray, defending Youichi with kicks and punches. Ruka stayed on the sidelines, protecting Hotaru.

Hotaru caught a glimpse of Youichi's face and she gasped again. She almost didn't recognize him if it weren't for the sleek, silver hair that was now tangled. His face was red and bruised, he had a black eye, and there was blood on his face.

"Youichi, apologize to her," Natsume said while sending a guard sprawling.

"Apol-," Youichi winced, "-agize to _her_? When _she's _the one that ordered these people to attack me?"

"If you just left willingly, everything would've been alright."

"'_Everything would've been alright_?' No _falser_ words have ever been spoken!"

Some guard lunged at Youichi, strangling him before Natsume knocked him out.

"Natsume! _Stop!_" Mikan was shouting from the other side of the room.

"Dude, I understand she's your ex-girl and all—"

Youichi snapped his head up so he looked at Natsume full on; he looked like he wanted to kill someone. "My _ex-girl_?"

"She's my half-_SISTER!_"

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_Yay, a long chapter, to make up for the short one last time. The chapter title is basically the main thing: "The Truth At Last". Of course, we already know, but Natsume and Ruka don't! I don't really think of this ending as a cliffy, actually. I mean, a true cliffy would've been: "She's my half—" and I would've ended the chapter there XD Lalala… now I have to write __Popular Reject__! (yawn)_

_Special thanks to my beta-reader: xSTICKYxNOTEx_

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks or so, because I have to update my other story, __Popular Reject__, as well as this one. I reply to all of my reviews, so if you have any questions, please note them in your review. _

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message, and I'll definitely be glad. :)  
_  
_–Mikarin/Snowflaked Angel_


	7. Chapter 7: The Bombshell

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

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To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_**Previously:**_

"_If you just left willingly, everything would've been alright."_

"'_Everything would've been alright?' No falser words have ever been spoken!"_

_Some guard lunged at Youichi, strangling him before Natsume knocked him out._

"_Natsume! Stop!" Mikan was shouting from the other side of the room._

"_Dude, I understand she's your ex-girl and all—"_

_Youichi snapped his head up so he looked at Natsume full on. "My ex-girl?"_

"_She's my half-SISTER!"_

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▬_Chapter Seven: The Bombshell▬_

"H-H-H-HA-HALF…" Ruka stammered.

"_Sister_?!?" Natsume and Ruka yelled.

I glared at Youichi. "I am _not_ related to this son of a bitch!"

Youichi death-glared right back at me. "You're related to me, no matter _what_ lies you're spewing out of your fucking mouth!"

A million colorful cuss words were running through my head at that moment; I felt like a drug-addict that went two weeks without drugs…

"Is this true, Mikan?" Ruka asked.

I narrowed my eyes, but nodded stiffly.

Suddenly, Youichi let out a groan. I glanced at him. He was clutching his stomach, apparently in agony because a guard just kicked him, taking advantage of the diversion. Natsume and Ruka joined in on the battle, sending the guards sprawling, but more guards just kept coming in. Soon enough, the room was full of guards and people flying all over the place. The girls backstage screamed and ran out, leaving only the hoard of guards, Youichi, Hotaru, Ruka, Natsume, and me.

Hotaru rushed over to my side, hand on my wrist, beseeching, "Please, Mikan, let him go! He's your half-brother, after all, right? Please…"

I looked at her. Her usually unreadable amethyst-colored eyes were full of hurt and pain, like she was indirectly receiving Youichi's torture. It must be a blood-related brother – sister thing.

"Mikan!"

I glanced up. This time, it was Natsume. He looked at me with those burning crimson eyes of his. I felt like I was torn into pieces.

"Stop," I muttered.

Nobody heard me except for Hotaru.

"STOP!" I screamed.

Everybody froze.

"Enough. I'll deal with him." I turned to Toushiro. "I'm sorry for all the trouble, Toushiro…"

Toushiro looked absolutely furious. "How many times do you have to cause this club trouble, Skye? First you refuse to sing and have a fight with my guards, and now because of _you_, the backstage is a dump and most of the mirrors are broken!"

I hung my head.

"It's not her damn fault, Kiyono," Natsume spoke up. "It's mine for bringing Youichi here. I didn't know their… relationship."

"Do you think I didn't know?" Toushiro said.

"What?" I stared at him.

"Of course I already knew that Skye Kandi was Mikan Sakura. Daughter of Yuka Azumi and Seiji Sakura. Half-sister to Sumire, Youichi, and Hotaru Sakura. Does not live with the Sakuras. Did you think _I, _Toushiro Kiyono, didn't research my star up before hiring her? And I knew fully well that she is only seventeen years old."

Natsume and Ruka gaped at me. "You're _seventeen?_"

I never felt more humiliated in my life. Toushiro met my eyes. He glanced around the room and back at me, as if telling me, _now we're even._

I grimaced back at him. I turned to Youichi and Hotaru. "Leave. Just leave."

Hotaru hurried to Youichi and helped him up, but Youichi refused to move.

Or maybe he couldn't move…

"Please, leave. Now." I turned away from them.

"Come on, Youichi," Hotaru whispered before hauling him away.

Ruka gave Natsume a meaningful look that I didn't understand. After a few seconds, Ruka sighed and hurried out of the door, after Youichi.

Natsume walked towards me and gave my shoulder a one-armed squeeze.

"I'll deduct from your tips as usual, Skye," Toushiro said before walking out with his guards.

Natsume and I were left alone in the trashed backstage room. I looked at everything but Natsume. His fingers suddenly grabbed my chin, forcing me to look up at him.

"You have a lot of explaining to do on the ride home, Skye Kandi."

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"Damn, Ruka took the limo," Natsume muttered.

Natsume and I stepped out of the club, our eyes adjusting to the sudden darkness, contrary to the colorful, flashy lights inside the club.

Natsume stuck his hand out. "Taxi!" he called out.

While the taxi pulled up, I stole a glance at Natsume. His expression was… composed. As usual. But was he mad at me? I couldn't tell.

Natsume slid into the backseat with me. "1632 Jerrilynn Street. Near the Sakura Mansion."

The taxi driver nodded curtly before hitting the gas.

Natsume leaned back in his seat and turned to face me.

I looked at him nervously.

"So?" he prompted.

I bit my lip. "What do you want to know about?"

"You."

I sighed. "My full name's Mikan Sakura. I'm a senior at Alice Academy. Which is _not_ a private school, despite the word 'academy'," I quickly added.

I looked at him. According to his expression, he wanted to know more. "I live with my mother, Yuka Azumi. We're… poor. Which is why I took on the job. My… biological father is _Seiji Sakura_," I hissed the name. "That's all."

Natsume wasn't satisfied at all. "I still don't get why you and Youichi hate each other so much. You said something about a whipping before… but I couldn't really understand you, your voice was so damn _high_."

I glared at him, then sighed. I didn't feel like arguing anymore today. I took a huge breath and began with the story of my mother.

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"Bye. Feel better, Youichi," Ruka said as he drove off.

Hotaru supported Youichi as they walked towards the front door of the mansion.

Youichi pinched Hotaru's arm. "What are we going to _say_?"

Hotaru knew what her brother meant. What if they walked in to find their mother, or father, or sister, or all, waiting for them, only to see Youichi all bloody and bruised?

"I…" Hotaru trailed off. Her violet eyes glanced around frantically for a solution. Suddenly, something in her mind clicked, and gears started turning.

**(A/N: And then she turned to superwoman and said, "Never fear, Hotaru is here!" Okay, I just felt like saying that, sorry for ruining the moment XD)**

"Hotaru?"

"Wait…" Hotaru took a deep breath. "Youichi, we're going to climb through a window. You ready?"

"Oh, oka—WHAT?"

"Be quiet! Anyway, if we get caught, I'm going to blame it on you. It was your fault anyway." Hotaru dragged Youichi to the backyard.

The mansion was filled with light. Hotaru peered in through one of the windows to the living room. As expected, her mother was there with fourteen-year-old Sumire, both reading fashion magazines.

Hotaru walked with Youichi towards the next downstairs window, which was the window next to the pantry. The coast was clear.

"Youichi, this is just like _Mission Impossible_, got that?" Hotaru turned to her brother.

Youichi nodded, wondering that the hell was _up_ with her sister today. Where had his quiet, soft-spoken, obedient sister gone?

"We're going to climb through the window and tip-toe upstairs. Hopefully, if we do it right, nobody will see us." Hotaru placed her hands on the window sill and pushed.

The window was unlocked. Thank God.

"Wait, Hotaru! That window creaks really loudly!" Youichi whispered.

Hotaru nodded. "I know. I hope Mom's loud classical music can drown it out, though…"

Hotaru pushed the window open inch by inch… slowly… slowly… then…

_CREEEEEEAK!_

"Oh shit!" Youichi muttered.

Hotaru snatched her hands away from the window and ducked down with Youichi.

They suddenly heard the classical music halt to a pause, and footsteps walking around the living room, as if searching for the cause of the noise.

Hotaru and Youichi held their breath.

Then, the classical music started again and they exhaled slowly. They both stood up and Hotaru stretched out her hands to open the window again, but she suddenly gasped and nearly fell over on her two inch heels.

"M-M-Mom?" Youichi stammered.

Miyuki was staring down at the two from the inside, her hands on her hips. She was more cunning than Hotaru and Youichi credited her to be.

"What are you two _doing_?"

Hotaru's eyes dropped to the ground. "May we come in, Mother?"

Miyuki's eyes narrowed. "Why didn't you come through the front door?"

Hotaru supported Youichi as he climbed through the window and fell to the floor. He winced. Hotaru climbed in after him, wobbling unsteadily on her heels.

"I _said_, why didn't you come through the door?" Miyuki repeated.

"Ummm, Mother, uh…" Youichi looked at Hotaru for help, but then looked away. He knew that if he let Hotaru speak, goody-Hotaru would immediately tell the truth.

But it was too late.

Hotaru said, "Well… Youichi got into a fight, Mother. He didn't want you to see him in this lowly state, so I suggested that he should try the window." Hotaru lowered her eyes in shame. "I'm sorry."

Miyuki stared at her angelic first daughter, then turned to the beat-up Youichi. "Is this true? You got into a _fight_?"

Youichi frowned and nodded.

"Youichi, you fool! Did you dirty the Sakura's name?"

"I didn't! _Mikan_ dirtied the Sakura's name!" was what Youichi wanted to say. But he knew that Mikan hated their mother, and it seemed like the feeling was mutual. It would do no good to fuel the fire. Though after what happened tonight, he wanted nothing but Mikan destroyed.

"No, I didn't. It was a… _misunderstanding_," Youichi said through his teeth. He knew that _hell_, there was no misunderstanding. Everything was as clear as crystal.

"Mother, Youichi's tired; perhaps he can answer your other questions tomorrow? You need your beauty sleep, and so do I," Hotaru chimed in.

Youichi glanced at Hotaru. His sister sure did know how to press the right buttons. Miyuki relaxed and nodded. "Go to your rooms."

"Thanks," Youichi mouthed.

Hotaru sighed and helped her brother up the stairs.

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_**Dear Diary,**_

_**Well, that did it. Youichi and Hotaru know. Oh my God… no words can describe how… scared, angry, IRATE, sad, nervous am I now.**_

_**Hell! UGH! Oh shit, they haven't promised anything yet! That means they can tell their parents!**_

_**Well, even if they DID promise to not tell, I doubt that they would keep it a secret. They were from the other side, after all.**_

_Ugh, my pen ran out of ink… I'm using pencil now._

_Back to the topic! I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO! We were doing SO, SO, SO well… until those two had to spoil EVERYTHING!_

_Damn, I just broke my pencil. It's obvious that I'm in no emotional state to write now, I'll write later… - M.A._

Mikan switched her lamp off and tucked her diary under her pillow. She flopped onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling.

A few hours later, she settled into an uneasy sleep.

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_Knock. Knock._

The sound of a door swinging open.

A gasp of surprise.

Shuffling of feet.

My eyes fluttered open. What was that _noise_?

I stretched in my bed and yawned satisfactorily. I glanced at the clock. 9:01 AM. Wow, was it that late already?

I swung my legs off the bed and stretched again, arching my back. I listened to the conversation outside of the bedroom.

"Hello, Aunt Yuka, I was thinking—"

I froze. Only _one_ person in the entire world called Mom "Aunt Yuka".

And she was one of _them_.

I flung open the bedroom door and skidded between the two talking people. I stretched my hands out, in a protective way, protecting Mom.

I glared at Hotaru. "What are you doing here?"

Hotaru looked surprised at my sudden appearance, and my sleep-wear attire. Of course, she was dressed head to toe in designer, as usual. Her scarf, earrings, bracelets; anything that _touched_ her body was designer.

"Actually, I was thinking of having a talk with you, Mikan," Hotaru said coolly.

"Oh? Then let's talk outside," I hissed. "Or is _outside_ not good enough for you?"

"Outside is perfectly fine, mind you." Hotaru lifted up her chin arrogantly.

"If you say so, _milady_," I sneered.

"Mikan… be nice," Mom said softly.

"Fine," I said reluctantly. I grabbed my coat and hurried out.

Hotaru and I stepped outside of the house. I didn't want Mom to listen to our conversation, so I walked down the alley of our house and folded my arms across my chest. "What?" I snapped.

Hotaru glared at me. "You don't have to worry; Youichi and I promise not to tell anybody about your job."

"That's what any _good_ soul would do. Is that it? Is that all you came for?" I looked pointedly away from her.

Hotaru exhaled slowly. "No, there's one more thing."

"What?" I snapped again.

Hotaru bit her lip, then grabbed my coat.

I took a step back.

"Um… I…"

"I don't have all day, unlike you, you know," I hissed.

Hotaru sighed. "Stay…stay away from—"

"If you're ordering me to do something, then save your breath. I have to go now, tell your family that I'll make them all _cry_ one day." I power-walked away, leaving Hotaru just standing there.

I ran back to my house and slammed the door shut.

Who was _she_ to tell me to do something?

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_I'm a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world  
My life is plastic, it's just fantastic_

Natsume swore. There was absolutely _nothing_ better than waking up to the song "Barbie Girl."

Note the sarcasm.

Natsume sat up and reached for his cell phone; he had forgotten to change his ringtone back ever since that rascal Youichi changed it a couple days ago.

Before _that_ incident.

As the memories of last night came flooding back to him, Natsume suddenly felt way older than he was a minute ago.

_You can brush my hair, and touch me anywhere_

_Imagination, life is your creation  
Come on, Barbie, let's go party!_

His ringing phone brought him back to earth. Natsume glanced at the caller ID and rolled his eyes.

"What, Mother?" Natsume said tiredly.

"Now, Natsume, dear, is that the right way to greet your mother who bothered to call and wish you well? I certainly hope not."

"No, Mother."

"Now, where have your manners gone? I shall assume that you just picked up the phone. What do you say?"

Natsume grit his teeth together. "_Hello, Mother. _How are _you_?" he seethed.

"Very good. I am fine and well. What do you say next?"

"How is Father?"

"Dear… enthusiasm, please."

"How is _Father_?"

"He is also fine and well. How are _you_, darling?"

"I am… fine and well," Natsume lied. Well, that was the only thing he could say. Anything other than that, his mother would be all over him. She treated him as if he was a two year old. And his father? His father didn't care about his son's feelings at all. It was all about business.

"That's absolutely splendid, Natsume! I assume that you've already finished breakfast?"

Natsume glanced down at his boxers. "Yes, Mother."

"And I assume Ruka is right next to you?"

"Y—no, Mother, he left for… urgent business."

"I see."

_I bet you see. You have so many damn spies in the complex!_

"What the h—heavens have you called me for?"

"Now, Natsume, don't be so impatient! Is it so wrong for a Mother to want to listen to her son's voice for a little while longer? But if you insist…" His mother sighed. "Have you been visiting the Sakura's lately?

Natsume froze. "Uh, yes," he lied.

"That's good. I hope you are telling the truth, dear… I think it would be a good idea to visit today."

"Yes, Mother. Now… I… err… have some urgent business to attend to, if you would excuse me…"

"Oh, dear, don't mind me. Coincidentally, I am in the same dilemma as you are currently, darling. Good-bye, dear!"

_Click_.

Natsume ruffled his hair and threw his phone on his bed. Conversations with his parents always gave him a damn headache. No cussing was allowed, no unnecessary questions, default answers, permanent questions, nothing more, nothing less. So many limits.

Natsume hated limits.

He stumbled out of his room and wrenched open Ruka's door. "We're going to visit the Sakura's… my fucking _mother said so_. You know how many spies she has 'watching over us'," Natsume spat.

"Okay."

Of course, Ruka was already fully-dressed. He was always one step ahead of Natsume.

"When are we going?" Ruka smoothed his hair down.

Natsume ruffled up his hair so it was messier than before. "Probably after we eat."

"Let's go. The usual?" Ruka asked.

Natsume nodded.

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"And what would _you_ like today?" The waitress at the local breakfast shop fluttered her eyelashes.

"The usual," Natsume said absentmindedly.

"Of course." The waitress sent a flirtatious look over her shoulder before prancing away.

"I swear I'll barf up my breakfast if she does that again." Ruka shivered.

"Hn." Natsume was still thinking about Mikan.

He was one-hundred percent sure Mikan was telling the truth… but if it _was_ the truth, then how could he ever look at any of the Sakura's again with the same look as before? It seemed as if he was looking out at the world through Mikan's eyes now… the Sakura's were the bad guys. But still, he didn't want to think about it. The Sakura's were just like any other rich household to him. They certainly _seemed_ nothing like the people Mikan described them to be.

"Natsume, your bacon's getting cold," Ruka snapped.

"Right, Mother," Natsume joked.

"So, what did Mikan tell you last night?" From Ruka's tone, Natsume knew he was dying to ask Natsume all morning.

"It's… a long story."

"I have time."

Natsume sighed. "Later, okay? Let's grab some Starbucks, and you can call the Sakura's to tell them we're coming."

"Why don't _you_ call them?"

_Because it's hard to even talk to one of them, now that I was enlightened by Mikan! _"I don't feel like it."

Ruka rolled his eyes. "It's about Mikan, right? Fine."

They left a tip on the table before walking out, catching the whole female population's eyes.

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_Duuuurrrring! Duuuurrring!_

Miyuki Sakura glanced at the caller ID and raised her eyebrows. "Hello?"

"Mrs. Sakura? This is Ruka Nogi."

"Yes, I know. What do you need?"

"Actually, Natsume and I were planning on stopping by soon…"

Miyuki's mouth dropped open surprise. "What? Oh, I mean, oh, what a pleasant surprise! Of course you're welcome…"

Ruka laughed nervously. "Well, that's great, Mrs. Sakura. I just called to let you know… we'll be coming in about fifteen minutes…"

"Oh, that's just splendid! Good-bye!" Miyuki speed-walked up the stairs and threw open Hotaru's door.

"Mother?" Hotaru looked startled. "What's going on?"

"Natsume is coming! Hurry, Hotaru, preparations! Oh, and also Ruka," Miyuki added with less enthusiasm. "Hurry, preparations! For heaven's sake, Hotaru, comb your hair! And where have your beautiful barrettes gone? I hope you haven't lost them…"

"Mother, calm down! Why do I have to prepare?" Hotaru muttered.

"Because he's your fiancée, that's why! Do you want the Hyuuga's to cancel the engagement?"

"No, but…"

"No buts, Hotaru! Hurry!" Miyuki clamped her manicured fingers on Hotaru's right ear and tugged Hotaru out of the chair.

"Ow, Mother! That hurts!" Hotaru wailed. Miyuki proceeded to drag her daughter into the bathroom.

"Hurry and do your make-up, or else!" Miyuki screeched, slamming her make-up kit in front of Hotaru. Hotaru sighed and wearily picked up the blush brush.

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_Ding dong!_

Natsume rang the doorbell, then stuffed his hands into his pockets. He and Ruka changed their casual attire to formal attire, knowing that when visiting the Sakura's that was what was mandatory.

Youichi opened the door. "Oh, it's you guys. No wonder Mother's been running around like a madwoman."

Youichi was not a pretty sight. He still was bruised all over the place, and most of his face and arms were bandaged. At least he could still walk.

"Youichi, what are you _doing_? Tell them to come in!" Natsume heard Miyuki hiss.

"Hello, Mrs. Sakura," Ruka said, kissing Miyuki's hand delicately.

"Hello, Mrs. Sakura," Natsume said cautiously, also bending to kiss her hand. If he did this yesterday, it all would've been second-nature to him, but now, after hearing Mikan's story, he couldn't help but walk cautiously into the house, wondering if he was standing at the same spot where Mikan was thrashing on the ground, or if he was standing at the same spot where Mikan's father was while whipping her…

Natsume shook his head. _Go to hell, disgusting thoughts!_

"Hotaru!" Miyuki called out. "They're here!"

Hotaru descended the stairs as gracefully as a cloud. Of course, she was beautiful as usual, but Natsume was too busy thinking about other things.

When Hotaru reached the ground floor, Natsume leaned in and kissed her cheek.

"Hello, Natsume," Hotaru said politely.

"Good day, Hotaru."

Awkward silence.

So many things happened yesterday, that everybody that went to the club was silent. It was too hard to pretend nothing happened yesterday night.

"Natsume, Ruka, why don't you sit down and have a cup of tea? _Sato!_" Miyuki shouted for the butler.

"Yes, ma'am?" The old butler hurried in.

"Tea."

"Yes, ma'am." The old butler hurried out.

Soon, all four of them were sitting on the couch, sipping tea. Youichi had sneaked up the stairs when Miyuki was fussing over Hotaru and Natsume.

Ruka sat politely in the corner of the couch, being pleasantly ignored by Miyuki.

"Natsume, dear, what brings you here?" Miyuki smiled at Natsume.

Natsume coughed politely. "I decided to see Hotaru today."

Hotaru's eyes widened. If they hadn't met yesterday, her eyes would've been widening with happiness. But Hotaru now knew that Natsume was lying. She wondered how many other times had he lied when he came over to "see her".

The thought of it made her depressed.

"Oh? But… didn't you four go out yesterday night together?" Miyuki inquired, her tattooed eyebrows raised.

"Yes, Mrs. Sakura… uh, I missed her, so I couldn't wait to see her again. Are we intruding?" Natsume mumbled.

"_Intruding?_" Miyuki placed her hand over Hotaru's. "Absolutely not. Hotaru is very delighted to see you, right Hotaru?" Miyuki squeezed Hotaru's hand.

"Yes, Mother. I am delighted," Hotaru said tonelessly.

Miyuki glared at Hotaru, then blinked and turned back to Natsume and started chattering away.

Ruka just sat quietly in the corner, his face unreadable as he stared at one of the ancient paintings in the mansion. He did not envy Natsume, who was being attacked by Miyuki's questions, but he did not like to be ignored.

Hotaru sighed quietly and placed her china tea-cup down without making a single noise.

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I took off my coat and put it on the table.

_Thump!_

Something white fell out of my coat pocket. I reached for it and saw that it was an envelope with nothing written on it. I flipped it to the back and opened it.

Inside was a sixty dollars.

_Who? What? Was it Natsume or Ruka?_ I thought.

Then, I remembered that Hotaru suddenly grabbed my coat when I was talking to her. So it was _her_.

This huge amount of money didn't make my eyes widen with awe anymore. My daily paycheck was sometimes more than this. I slammed the envelope back in my coat pocket and put on my tattered coat again.

"Where are you going, Mikan?" Mom asked from the bedroom.

"Out!" I yelled. "I'll be back soon!"

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I rolled my eyes a little bit as Mrs. Sakura chattered away. Did this woman ever stop talking?

I glanced at Hotaru, who was looking slightly apologetic and hurt at the same time. Wonder what's up with her.

I shifted my eyes to Ruka, who was looking rather distant and detached from my world. Wonder what's up with _him_.

With great effort, I tuned back into the one-sided conversation.

"So, Natsume, how is school? After all, you do go to one of the best universities here."

"Yes, school's fine." And that wasn't a lie. I was the top student at our school. "It is a nice university, yes."

My tongue felt heavy. Was it because that I actually didn't cuss for an hour or something?

"Splendid! See, Hotaru, Natsume is smart _and_ good-looking!"

I raised my eyebrows and glanced at Hotaru, whose eyes were wide with disbelief at her mother. Her expression totally said 'you did _not_ just say that, Mother!'

"Mrs. Sakura, can I talk to Hotaru alone for a minute?" Anything to get that annoying mother away from me.

Mrs. Sakura's mouth parted open in surprise. She quickly purred, "Of course, dear." She gave Hotaru a meaningful look. "Sit close to Natsume!" she said in a carrying whisper before trotting out.

I sighed in relief as she disappeared from view.

"Sorry about that," Hotaru said quietly.

"Hn."

"Sorry, Ruka. She's just biased like that," Hotaru said to Ruka.

"It's alright… I'm used to it, anyway. You're biased too." Ruka suddenly covered his mouth.

"What do you mean?" Hotaru asked. I was confused too.

"Nothing."

Silence.

Hotaru sat next to me, keeping a safe distance between us. I used to have feelings for her, but did she know that my feelings for Mikan overpowered my feelings for her now?

_BANG!_

Hotaru gasped and jumped on me in shock.

My eyes widened. I was still a teenager, you know, I had hormones.

I've got to say that I liked it when she jumped on me until I saw who just came through the front door.

Holy fuck.

Mikan was staring straight at me and Hotaru, looking bewildered and wearing the most hurt expression in the world mixed with anger.

I looked back at her, trying to tell her that nothing was going on between Hotaru and me, but I didn't think she read my telepathy correctly. She looked away from us as Hotaru jumped back, looking scared and embarrassed.

Mrs. Sakura hurried in, probably wondering what was wrong. She stopped when she caught sight of Mikan, holding an envelope.

Hotaru seemed to have seen the envelope because she let out a tiny groan.

"What do we have here?" Mrs. Sakura raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms.

Mikan lifted her chin up defiantly and placed the envelope on the living room table. She looked at Mrs. Sakura as she said, "I don't need your charity, Hotaru Sakura."

Mrs. Sakura immediately turned to me. "Don't worry, Natsume, she doesn't come here often, she's just a little runt who doesn't know anything high-class…"

Mikan stared fixedly at a wall. "Yeah." She blinked and turned away, but I caught sight of her watery eyes.

"Who told _you_ to speak?" Mrs. Sakura said to her.

"Nobody."

"GET OUT! Nobody wants you here! We have a _guest_," Mrs. Sakura shrieked.

Mikan blinked rapidly before turning around and running out the door. Her heavy footsteps were heard, then a sudden bang of the gate.

"Sorry for the inconvenience, Natsume—Natsume?" Mrs. Sakura was saying. I pushed past her and ran out the door, in pursuit of Mikan. If they thought that I would just leave her crying by herself, they were wrong.

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Hotaru stared at the door, the place where Natsume vanished.

"What's up with Natsume? Why did he go after the runt?" Mother was asking.

_He left me for Mikan_.

Hotaru knew it all along, starting from the night where Natsume had called Skye Kandi on his phone while in the limo with Hotaru, Youichi, and Ruka, that he liked somebody else.

Hotaru knew it was selfish of her, but she wanted Mikan to disappear. Before she existed in Natsume's mind, Natsume actually liked Hotaru.

But now it's too late.

Hotaru went to Mikan's house that day to warn her to stay away from Natsume. But the warning was too late. And Mikan wouldn't have listened anyway.

She never listened.

"Does he know that runt, Hotaru? Hotaru?" Mother was saying.

Hotaru didn't reply.

"Run after him, Hotaru! Call him back!" Mother yelled.

Hotaru closed her eyes and trudged up the stairs.

"HOTARU!"

Hotaru ignored her Mother for the first time in her life. There was no use of calling him back, winning him back.

Hotaru knew she had already lost.

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_So many secrets being revealed in the recent chapters! (gasp) Yes, Hotaru is Natsume's fiancée, and vice versa! Natsume wasn't completely besotted with her, but Hotaru was with him! But, before, Natsume did think she was pretty and smart. He did not object to the engagement, but then again, even if he DID object, nothing would've been changed. You know parents. (rolls eyes)_

_I feel so sorry for updating so late; my __Popular Reject__ readers are going to kill me. But I'm not going to update __Popular Reject__ next; I will update another two chapters of Unlucky Girl before. Because I want __Unlucky Girl__ to finish first, I don't want two fanfictions ending at the same time. So I want to go ahead with this one. So, spread the word to __Popular Reject__ readers, please! And if you are one, please understand what I'm thinking._

_Special thanks to my beta-reader: xSTICKYxNOTEx_

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks. _

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message, and I'll definitely be glad. :)  
_  
_–Geena/Snowflaked Angel_


	8. Chapter 8: Lose Lose Situation

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

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To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_**Previously:**_

"_Does he know that runt, Hotaru? Hotaru?" Mother was saying._

_Hotaru didn't reply._

"_Run after him, Hotaru! Call him back!" Mother yelled._

_Hotaru closed her eyes and trudged up the stairs._

"_HOTARU!"_

_Hotaru ignored her mother for the first time in her life. There was no use of calling him back; winning him back._

_Hotaru knew she had already lost._

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▬_Chapter Eight: Lose-Lose Situation ▬_

_What's wrong with me?_

_Why am I running?_

_Wait… are there tears in my eyes? Running down my face?_

_Why?_

I just couldn't do it. One more second in that mansion and I will explode, or breakdown, or disintegrate. Just like a dangerous science experiment gone wrong.

Too wrong.

_Hotaru and… Natsume?_

I shook my head while running, spraying tears and snot all over the place. I banged the gate shut, hearing it rebound open again. The passerby stopped in their tracks as I pushed past them, staring at me with confused and concerned faces.

"Hey, are you okay?" A somewhat familiar voice said, holding my shoulders so that I couldn't run past him.

I glanced at Koko's outstretched hand which had a tissue. I gratefully blew my nose. "Th-Th-Tha-anks K-Ko-k-ko."

"Sugar Sweet, you're a mess," Koko patted my head.

"I-I'm s-so sorry…" I whispered before pulling away from him and running forward again. I couldn't come in contact with anyone. It would only turn me into a sobbing mess.

An emotional wreck.

My strong legs carried me all the way to the park down the street with no problems. It seemed that the only option was to run and never stop until…

Until _what_?

Until everything was all better? That was impossible. No matter what, everything would not be alright. If everything was really _all _right, then Mom and I would be living in the mansion and Miyuki would have never existed.

My bar singer job would've never existed.

And Hotaru, Youichi, Sumire, and Ruka would've never existed.

And Natsume would've never existed.

"SHUT UP!" I screamed.

_Stop thinking about him and her, please! _I begged my mind.

Suddenly, I heard heavy footsteps; somebody was running toward me. I didn't turn around; what was the use of turning around? I wanted to be alone, regardless of who was coming at me.

I ran some more, my legs aching after running too long on the grass on the field in the park. My ragged breaths did not help me run faster either. Soon, I tripped over a rock and collapsed onto the long, swaying grass and never got up again.

I lied on the ground, inhaling the smell of the ground, which was fresh and earthy. The smiling sun gave tingling warmth to my back and I wanted to fall asleep. I smiled giddily. It felt like my brain was filled with too much air, I felt light and buoyant.

I felt somebody breathing above.

I slowly flipped over onto my back and saw a tan arm. "Hey, Natsume." I smiled.

"What are you doing?" he asked me.

"Enjoying the beautiful earth." I giggled as I looked back at the ground. "It smells good."

"I'm sure." He sounded skeptical.

"Well, I'm sure, that's for sure!" I giggled again. Ah, what was this wonderful feeling? It blocked off all my feelings of despair… I loved it!

"Why'd you follow meeeee?" I sang, running my fingers along a blade of green grass.

"I felt… never mind."

I smiled at the blade of grass. It was the shape of a pencil!

"You were crying," Natsume suddenly said.

I blinked. "Yes."

"Why?" Natsume probed.

"I don't know."

"Is it because of Hotaru? Because is nothing going on between me and her."

"Okay."

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'_Okay'?_ _Was she even aware of what she was saying?_

_Was she high?_

"Mikan, are you high?"

She arched her eyebrows. "I feel light and fluffy from the earth and sun, Natsume."

"Oh."

Silence.

Okay, it wasn't exactly silence; she was kicking her feet up in the air and humming softly to herself as she ripped apart a blade of grass.

I decided to sit next to her. She was right, the earth _did_ smell good.

"'Okay'? Is that all you have to say about it?"

"Yes."

I stared at her. Was she avoiding my eyes on purpose? Or was she _really_ that interested on the grass?

"Mikan, look at me."

She blinked rapidly. Her legs stopped kicking and she stopped humming. She sat up with her back to me. She let her long lashes rest over the tops of her cheeks before facing me.

Then, she opened her tear-filled eyes.

I understood immediately. I wrapped my arms around her and let her head fall on my shoulder. She sniffled and hiccupped at the same time.

I held her closer to me. I felt her hands clench before they clutched my shirt as if it was a lifeline.

"Mikan… Hotaru is my fiancée. But I don't love her. I love _you_," I said in her hair.

She let out a huge sigh; from relief or exasperation, I did not know. "B-but… she's so much prettier, richer, and smarter than I am… y-you—"

I silenced her by placing my lips on hers.

Her lips… on mine…

Her lips didn't react at first, but then she seemed to register that she was being kissed. Her lips moved in time to mine for a few seconds before they froze again and started struggling. Mikan's hands pushed against my chest to try to push me away.

"Mmm! MMM!" Her screams were muffled.

I pulled away for a split second before coming back for more. She struggled again before finally giving up and dissolving in the kiss.

_Hmm… cherries… no, strawberries. _

I hated fruit, but I now craved for more strawberries as I kissed her more roughly now. She whimpered.

I remembered our first kiss at the party… it was one-sided. I didn't want it to be one-sided now. I wanted to have a _response_.

I backed off a little bit. A second later, I knew it was the right thing to do. Her lips seemed alarmed by the fact that I wasn't _there_ and fumbled against mine, trying to keep it going…

Then, she gasped and I nearly slipped in my tongue. My eyes flew open and I suddenly realized what my hands were unconsciously doing.

I jumped back. "I…"

I had sex with many girls before; I had seen so many naked bodies before. Why did I suddenly feel uneasy just by looking at a few unbuttoned buttons?

It wasn't just about the buttons, it was the smooth skin revealed underneath.

Mikan silently buttoned her shirt buttons and coat buttons. No trace of that delicious skin was seen now.

"I'm leaving," Mikan snapped.

"Wait, Polka-bra—"

Her head snapped around to look at me.

"I mean, Mikan… I meant what I said earlier. Every word of it." I stared into her eyes, trying to reveal the sincerity of my words.

She seemed to understand me, because her scowl vanished and was replaced with a tiny smile. A pink glow appeared on her cheeks, deepening into a bright red.

"I know," she whispered before running off.

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**(A/N: The unbolded diary means that it was crossed out so that when somebody picks up and reads it, it is illegible.)**

_**Dear Diary,**_

_Natsume… he said he LOVED me! Me! Me! Me! Me! Not Hotaru! Me! Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!_

_Me! He chose me! He loves me! He loves me! He loves me! He loves me!_

_MEEEE!_

_**Wow… I just realized that I technically stole Natsume from Hotaru. Ah, the evilness. Well, it wasn't intentional… I never knew that he was her fiancée… but I guess I could use him to my advantage. I've gotten revenge on Hotaru and Youichi. Who's next? Haha.**_

_**But… he chose me! Over Hotaru! Haha, life's beginning to look up! – M.A.**_

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_Ding… Dong… DINGDINGDINGDINGDINGDINGDONG!_

"Who is it?"

Natsume leaned into the speaker at the gate. "Me."

The gates swung open.

Natsume strolled down the ever-so familiar path to a huge mansion, bigger than the Sakura mansion. Natsume leaned in on the fountain in the middle of the circular driveway and looked around.

Everything looked pretty much the same. There was some remodeling done here and there, but the main house was still a huge three-story. Behind the main house, there was still a tall, skinny two story for the maids and butlers.

Extravagant, much? It looked like the size of Hearst Castle, though, of course, in reality, the Hyuuga property was much smaller than Hearst's.

**(A/N: Those of you who don't know what Hearst Castle is, it's not something made-up by me. It's in San Simeon, California, and it's this huge area (900,000 sq. ft or something, not including the private zoo and fields William Hearst owns). I went there, and the houses are so beautiful, and it's SO HUGE! I seriously wonder why he spent most of his money creating his "castle" and demolishing and rebuilding his many houses/towers.)**

Who the _hell_ could beat that crazy man's property?

Natsume walked up the front stairs, knowing that when he reached the top of them, he still had to walk past the front garden and a few perfectly lined trees before he could actually see the door to his house. Those who didn't know better probably would've got lost already.

After walking at a snail's pace, he reached his house and rang the doorbell. The double-doors opened and the main butler whom Natsume had known since birth, Keiichiro, bowed.

"Natsume… you're back," Keiichiro smiled.

"Old man!" Natsume lightly patted Keiichiro on the back as they walked inside the lobby to another double-door, which was the real door to the house.

"Welcome home, Natsume," Keiichiro said as he pushed open the doors and slid out of the way, so that Natsume immediately saw two long rows of servants, bowing as well.

He nodded at the old man, who smiled a little bit. After all, Natsume had a better relationship with Keiichiro than his own father.

"Welcome home, Natsume-sama!" The two rows of servants bowed even lower as I walked through the center passage they made for me.

"I would like to speak with Mother," Natsume said.

"Certainly. But by phone…?"

"It must be discussed face to face," Natsume said firmly.

"Mistress will be right down."

Natsume nodded and seated himself on the long couch.

"What would Natsume-sama like to drink?"

Natsume looked up. A new girl servant. "Boba." He stared into her dull green eyes.

"C-Certainly!" She fumbled in her uniform ribbons before dashing off, nearly falling flat on her face.

"Natsume." The tone was disapproving.

"Aw, c'mon Old Man. I know you did it all the time when you were my age," Natsume drawled.

Keiichiro chuckled. "You're right."

"Though I still wonder why you became our butler… you were rich, after all."

"I owe your family my life," Keiichiro said seriously.

Natsume sighed. "Whatever."

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"Ah, Mistress!" Keiichiro backed away from me.

I looked up the spiral stairs. "Mother."

"Natsume." Her tone was unreadable and bland.

I got up and met my mother at the bottom of the stairs with the usual polite kiss on each cheek.

Mother reached up and placed her ring-adorned hand on my cheek. "You've changed a little bit since I last saw you, Natsume."

"It's only been a year, Mother."

"Your… eyebrows have grown… thicker." Mother was a fashion-designer. She noticed weird details like this all the time.

"I suppose."

Mother just looked at me, as if waiting for me to say something.

Oh. "Would you like to sit, Mother?" I said.

Mother held out her hand to me and I led her to the couch, which was far away from the stairs, seeing how big the house was. You could get your daily exercise by walking from the stairs to the kitchen.

"Natsume, what do you need to talk to me about? Something so important that you need to speak to me face to face?" Mother asked as she brought a tea cup to her lips.

Natsume took a breath and exhaled. "I'm cancelling the engagement with the Sakura's."

Mother dropped her tea cup and it smashed into pieces on the hard, wooden floor.

Mother didn't even notice that she dropped it; her expression did not show any signs of remorse or shock.

"Are you out of your _mind_, Natsume? You can't just break the engagement!" Mother asked me, almost hysterical. "The world doesn't resolve around _you_, Natsume! Think about our family's business, our name, our reputation! Do you think you can just…" Mother fought for her breath, "_stride _back in here… and… and!"

I looked at her.

Mother recollected herself and left out a tiny cough. "Why, may I ask?"

I rolled my eyes. I had my answer ready. "There's another woman."

Mother raised her eyebrows. "Another… woman? Not one of those playthings you have all the time?"

Oh, I forgot Mother knew about those.

"No, not a plaything." I smirked slightly at the thought of Mikan being called a plaything. _Wonder what her reaction would be?_

Mother huffed indignantly. "No matter what happens, I will not let you break this engagement. You break this engagement, you break the poor girl's heart, which breaks the bond between us and the Sakura's, which… you know what happens."

"Yes, Mother, I won't be able to inherit the Hyuuga companies and property, because we won't have any property and we would get kicked out of our house and live as beggars forever. I know Mother; I've heard the story a million times since birth."

"Just reminding you."

"But, no, Mother. I've always listened to your important orders, but this time, it won't be the same. I _will_ break the engagement. I _will_ do what I want. I will _not_ obey you." Natsume stood up. "That's all."

Mother stood up and clutched my arms. "You can't do this, Natsume."

"Actually, I can."

"Think about your father…"

"And has _he_ ever given a damn about me?"

Mother's eyes hardened a bit. "Your father loves you more than you think, Natsume. Everything he does is to build _your_ future."

I snorted and firmly pushed her away. "I'm going to the Sakura's now."

"Natsume!" Mother shouted.

"What's going _on_?"

Mother and I looked up to see Aoi and Father standing at the bottom of the stairs. Aoi had her head cocked to the side and Father just stood there.

"Natsume, are you doing something bad again?" Aoi sighed. _Damn little drama queen, always pretending she's the older one. _

"Fuck off, Aoi."

"Ouch," she said sarcastically, sweet tone completely gone.

"Natsume, I shall not permit you to spew profanity at my daughter." Father spoke with his usual low, menacing rumble.

"I know she's your favorite," I muttered quietly.

Unfortunately, Mother heard me and gave me an exasperated look.

"I'm breaking the engagement with the Sakura's," Natsume repeated as he walked out the front door.

Keiichiro followed me uncertainly. "Natsume, are you sure about this…?"

"I'm sure, Old Man." I pushed the second doors open and was officially out of the main house.

"Natsume!" A voice boomed.

I stopped in my trek down the stairs, but did not look back.

"I'm giving you permission to break the engagement. But you will regret it. Leaving Hotaru Sakura for another woman… you're out of your mind." The door slammed.

Natsume exhaled and looked up at the blue sky, wondering what Mikan was doing. When he finally walked to his car, he slammed his foot on the gas and sped away in the direction of the Sakura mansion.

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"Natsume, would you like anything to drink? Tea, coffee, latte?" Miyuki fluttered around Natsume.

"No thanks," Natsume said quietly.

"But, why the sudden short notice? You should've let us know that you were coming, so the servants could've made you something. I'm sure you're hungry?"

"No, I'm not going to stay for long."

"Oh, alright. Do you want me to call Hotaru down? She already knows you're here."

"Actually, I would like to speak to Hotaru privately. Is there a place?" Natsume asked.

Miyuki looked surprised. "Yes, why, of course. I'll call Hotaru down and she can show you. _Hotaru!_"

"Yes, Mother?" Hotaru appeared at the top of the stairs.

Miyuki's mouth dropped completely open. "What—_why aren't you dressed-up, Hotaru?!_" she whisper-shrieked.

Natsume glanced at Hotaru. She was still in her gray sleeping robe, but other than that, she was fully-dressed.

Miyuki cleared her throat. "_Hemhmm_. Hotaru, Natsume wants to talk to your privately, so please escort him to the conference room."

"Yes, Mother." Hotaru descended the stairs.

Hotaru trudged ahead of Natsume, leading him down the hall and into a double-door room. Natsume stepped in silently and sat down, with Hotaru facing him on the other side.

"What do you want to talk to me about?" Hotaru asked quietly, staring at Natsume.

Natsume didn't say anything for a moment. "Hotaru, you're a really nice girl and all, but…"

"There's someone else," Hotaru said tonelessly.

"…yes."

"It's Mikan, isn't it?"

"…yes. That's why I can't do this anymore; I'm going to cancel the engagement." Natsume looked directly at Hotaru.

Hotaru let out a quiet sigh. "You're serious about this."

"Hell, I am."

"Your parents would kill you, though. Mine would too, if they didn't finish the job."

Natsume chuckled a little bit. "Funny. Actually, my father gave the 'okay'. Which is all I need, really."

Hotaru raised her eyebrows in surprise. She knew about Natsume's relationship with his father. "Why?"

Natsume shrugged, and then stood up. "I'm just here… to tell you. I'm sorry, Hotaru."

**X**** --********-- ********--**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

"Mikan, I'm home!" Mom called out as she walked into the shack.

Mom froze in her tracks, her plastic grocery bags dangling from her arms.

Natsume stood up from his chair. "Ms. Azumi, I'm Natsume Hyuuga," he said in his deep voice.

I noticed he can really influence people by changing the tone of his voice. Seducing to serious to polite. People would never tell that he had a totally different nature.

But Mom was always observant, and I could tell she wasn't influenced by Natsume's—dare I say—charm.

Just like me.

"Who are you to Mikan and what exactly are you doing here, Mr. Natsume Hyuuga?" It was clear that Mom had no idea who he really was.

"I'm Mikan's boyfriend; Mikan brought me here to meet you."

Mom immediately looked at me. Embarrassed, I looked at Natsume.

"Oh. Ah… can I speak to Mikan for a moment?" Mom asked Natsume. Without waiting for a reply, she dropped her groceries and dragged me to the bedroom. She shut the door and turned to me, hands on her hips.

"What's this, Mikan? You never told me you had a boyfriend," Mom said seriously.

"Umm… I didn't know he was so serious until a few days ago, actually," I replied nervously. And it was the truth. Natsume, the playboy… I still didn't trust him a little bit...

"From the looks of it, he's… wealthy. Are you sure about this…?" Mom's face was full of worry.

"Mom!" I whined. "I'm seventeen!"

"He's older than you. You're seventeen."

"How do you know he's older?"

"Is he not?" Mom asked suspiciously.

"No, you're right. He's nineteen," I said grudgingly.

"I just don't want you to get hurt, Mikan." Mom lightly touched my shoulder.

"I'll be fine. I… lo—" I stopped. "Our feelings for each other seem to be mutual."

Now I was sounding like a damn aristocrat.

Mom looked at me for a few seconds before sighing. Then, she tensed up again. "Wait… Natsume Hyuuga… in the newspaper wasn't he… Hotaru's fiancée?" Mom's eyes widened. "I'm sure of that! Wait, what is going on, Mikan?"

I avoided her look. "Natsume canceled the engagement with Hotaru today."

Mom's mouth dropped open before she roughly grabbed my shoulders and shook them. "And I'm guessing you're the reason of that? _Mikan!_"

"I know that it's wrong, but it's not my fault that Natsume likes me too! If he doesn't love Hotaru, why should he marry her?" I retorted.

Mom's eyes widened even bigger before dropping her arms in defeat. "But… Hotaru, Hotaru loves him, Mikan."

"But he doesn't love her! That's what he said! Why can't you just _understand_, Mom?" I stomped my foot in frustration. Mom really wasn't getting it, was she?

I looked at Mom's expression. "Mom I lo—"

"Have you ever thought," Mom interrupted me, "that what you're doing is wrong?"

I sighed in exasperation. "I'm _trying_ to get you to understa—"

"Have you ever thought," Mom interrupted me again, "that the same thing happened eighteen years ago?"

I closed my mouth that was about to protest. "What?" I said in confusion.

"Have you ever thought that Natsume could be playing the role of Seiji, you, the role of _Miyuki_, and Hotaru the role of _me?_ Have you ever thought about that, Mikan?" Mom's voice was just above a whisper.

Her words hit me hard. I felt like I had been blown back. I literally stumbled and had to grab the edge of my desk for support.

Mom was totally right.

I was playing the role of… _Mi—_I can't even say her name, let alone _fathom_ the idea of me doing the same evil things as _her!_

"Do you understand, Mikan?" Mom touched my cheek lightly. I knew her words were not to make me hurt, but to make me _understand_.

"Oh, Mom!" I hugged her. "I understand, b-but… I really like Natsume! And what's done is what's done! I can't—I just _can't_ let him go anymore!"

"_Baka…_"

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"Natsume!" I cried as I saw the familiar figure of Natsume walk through the doors.

"Oh, I see how it is now," Kyo teased. I blushed and punched him lightly on the arm. It wasn't my time to go up yet, so I decided to hang out at Toushiro's reserved table, with the perfect view of the stage and anybody coming in.

Rosalie was with us, but she just left because she was singing next. I made room for Natsume as he sat next to me, draping his arm around my shoulders confidently.

"Where's Ruka?" I asked, trying to hide my blushing face in my see-through scarf. To be honest, I was very proud of my outfit tonight… I picked it myself.

The theme was light-blue today. My hair was up in two side-pigtails, which were curled to perfection, thanks to Alicia and Chidori. A couple of seconds was all it took for Chidori to dust my eyelids with light-blue powder. And it looked _great_.

A short light-blue dress was what I simply had on, chosen by Alicia, but I added the white sleeve-gloves and the see-through scarf, that had a tinge of blue to it. So cool, right?

"You look nice," Natsume was saying.

I made a face. _Nice?_ That's it?

"Thank you," I said coolly.

Toushiro, Akira, and Kyo chuckled at my disappointment.

Natsume smirked and turned his attention to the stage. The party wasn't started yet, but it would soon.

Suddenly, a black-tuxedoed guard walked toward out table and whispered something to Toushiro while adjusting his black sunglasses.

Toushiro, Akira, and Kyo immediately got up and started walking toward the door backstage.

"What's going on, Toushiro?" I asked.

"Nothing serious, seems like Rosalie threw up and fainted," Toushiro replied.

"THAT IS A HELL OF A _SERIOUS_ PROBLEM!" I screamed.

The surrounding people looked at me weirdly. I meekly smiled and shrank back in my seat as Toushiro hurried off.

"Nice going, Polka-dots," Natsume teased as he leaned back in his seat comfortably.

I scowled at him, which somehow makes him laugh every time. Do I look funny when I scowl?

"Stop pouting," he said.

"I'm not _pouting, _I'm _scowling!_" I replied indignantly, scowling again as I crossed my arms around my chest.

"Yes, you _are_," Natsume said as he poked his finger at my lower lip, which was apparently sticking out; as if I was pouting.

I bit my lower lip and scowled at him again, but even I knew that I looked funny. He chuckled as he took a swig from a bottle that he ordered without me noticing.

"Drinking again?" I said disapprovingly.

"What else would I be here for?" Natsume asked.

My mouth dropped open. "Well… how about _me_?"

Natsume laughed again as he took another swig.

"Natsu—Youichi…" I caught sight of a silver-haired boy walking down the steps. He caught my eye and started walking toward our table.

"Youichi!" Natsume waved him over. Youichi plunked in the empty seat beside Natsume.

"What are you doing here?" Natsume growled at Youichi.

"Decided to come by again," Youichi said while he shrugged. I stared at him, trying to find out his motives.

He deliberately avoided my look and sipped Natsume's drink. Natsume punched his shoulder, which caused Youichi to wince.

"Still recovering, Natsume," Youichi explained as Natsume muttered his apologies.

All this time, I was quiet, staring at Youichi, who wasn't looking at me. Natsume noticed my silence, and then whispered something to Youichi; something I couldn't hear.

I looked away from them, on the stage, where a substitute was singing in place of Rosalie. The audience was groaning at first, but once the girl opened her mouth, the audience started cheering again.

_She's pretty… and a good singer, _I thought as I sipped my Sherry Temple, loving the taste.

"It's _her_ fault!" I suddenly heard Youichi say. I whipped my head in his direction, to see Youichi stabbing his finger at me and wearing a look of deepest hatred.

I didn't speak. I looked at Natsume, for a suitable explanation. But Natsume wasn't looking at me.

"It's nobody's fault, Youichi. Suck it up. If it's anyone's, it's mine," Natsume was saying.

Youichi stared at me, and I stared back, quietly wondering what happened, but not wanting to look confused and vulnerable. Soon, Youichi rounded on Natsume.

"Just because she's your girl, doesn't mean you have to take the blame for everything. Don't you understand that Hotaru's in pain because of how _she_ manipulated you?" Youichi shouted, offensively close to Natsume's face.

I understood what was happening now.

"Oh, is she mad? I guess it is my fault," I said nonchalantly, "but its sort of hers too, for letting Natsume go so easily."

"So you think this is Hotaru's fault?" Youichi said calmly.

Disturbed by his sudden calmness, I blinked. "No, only partially her fault, but her fault is there."

Youichi looked back indifferently at me. The last thing I saw was his hand twitching toward Natsume's drink.

A second later, my eyes were closed and my face and hair was dripping with beer. I heard a crash behind me.

I couldn't open my eyes yet, but I heard a clattering noise. I finally opened my eyes and saw Natsume's hand on Youichi's collar.

"You just threw my drink at my girlfriend, Youichi Sakura!" Natsume yelled, punching Youichi in the guts.

"Natsume, stop! Please!" I bawled. He dropped Youichi, who fell to the floor. Natsume rushed over to me and dabbed at my ruined face.

"Are you okay?" Natsume asked.

I blinked a few times, and then put on a fake smile. "I'm fine, happens all the time. Compared to others, this is nothing."

He looked at me with an expression I couldn't understand. I just smiled at him as he turned away.

"Skye, you're coming up—what the _hell_ happened to you?" Alicia came out and gaped at me.

"Tripped, then got wet," I muttered, sitting up from the seat and following Alicia without a backward glance.

"God, Skye, Chidori's going to be _bitching_ because of you…" Alicia sighed, twisting her caramel-colored hair into a complicated bun, sticking her pen inside her hair.

"Sorry," I apologized absentmindedly as we stepped backstage. I felt like crying, really.

Sure enough, Chidori almost had a heart attack. As professional as she was, she dunked my head underwater and commanded, "WASH!"

"At least your outfit wasn't ruined," Alicia noted happily.

Chidori hissed at Alicia, accidentally stabbing me in the eye when applying eyeliner.

"Oh shit! Sorry, Skye!" Chidori wailed.

I wanted to rub my eye, but knew that Chidori would tackle me if I did. I blinked rapidly. "Be careful," was all I said.

"I'm so sorry, Skye, now your eyes are red… wait, both eyes?" Chidori leaned in.

I blinked back my tears. "No, it's not your fault…" I paused. _It's not your fault. 'It's nobody's fault, Youichi. Suck it up. If it's anyone's, it's mine.'_

Natsume…

Three and a half hasty minutes later, I was pushed on stage.

I swallowed. "Dance away," I said, putting on a bright smile on my face.

_When I feel blue_

_I think of you_

'_Cuz you're true_

_Wherever you are_

_Near or far_

_You still are my shining star_

_Sometimes it's mad_

_Things get bad_

_And I'm sad_

_Wherever you are_

_There is light_

_By my side_

_I feel alright_

_Because our love is big _

_Bigger than the two of us_

_And words cannot describe_

_How I miss you so much_

_I feel love in your arms,_

_And I feel love when I'm with you_

_I feel love in your eyes _

_Wherever you may be_

_You make me high_

_I can fly_

_Touch the sky_

_Wherever you are_

_I feel free in ecstasy_

_Just you and me_

The middle table, in the center of the room, in the back…

Natsume wasn't there. Youichi was gone, too. I closed my eyes and looked at the throng of dancing people, shaking their bodies and with their hands outstretched to the ceiling.

Suddenly, I looked towards Table Sixteen, and he was there.

Natsume.

A tear trickled down my eye and down my cheek. I smiled softly at him, totally forgetting that I was supposed to be dancing.

_You save my day_

_Pave the way_

_And you'll stay_

_Wherever you are_

_In my heart_

_From the start_

_We'll never part_

We'll never part… I certainly hoped so. But I knew that I, the Unlucky Girl, would never get anything my way.

Natsume was too good to be true.

Natsume… the angel in the disguise of the devil…

_Because our love is b-big _

_Bigger than the two of us_

_And words cannot describe_

_How I m-miss you so m-much _

Most of the audience stopped dancing and looked up at me. They noticed my stuttering.

Some looked on with confusion, some with smugness, and some with… sympathy?

_I feel love in your arms_

_And I feel love when I'm with you_

_I feel love in your eyes _

_Wherever you may be _

_(Wherever you are)_

_(I feel love)_

_La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la…_

_(Wherever you are)_

"Enjoy your night." I semi-smiled as I stepped off the stage, and into the backstage room.

Nobody was in there. I sighed as I pulled my scarf off. I didn't feel like explaining my stuttering anyway.

Suddenly, warm hands embraced me from behind. I immediately knew who it was. I leaned back into that strong chest and sighed; knowing that if I could be in these arms forever, in this moment, it would be enough.

"I'm sorry," I choked out. "I really didn't mean to have you break up wi—"

"Shh…" he breathed into my ear. "I've already told you, it's not your fault."

I started crying softly. He turned my body so that I faced him, then he clutched me to himself, keeping me safe and protected.

"I-I didn't m-mean for—" I couldn't continue my sentence, whimpers and wails were cluttering my speech.

He held me tighter, giving me strength and warmth.

And love.

"I love you," I managed to say seriously without hiccupping.

Natsume sighed into my hair. "You finally said it."

I smiled a little bit. "Yes, finally."

I looked up into that angelic face… and was surprised by a face with sad eyes and a smile. That expression was so beautiful, I still remember it now.

After that, a passionate kiss was shared, and the puzzles of the world all fell into place.

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_Mikan Sakura stretches as she finally takes her hands away from her keyboard. She glances at the clock. _

_10:06pm._

_Mikan lifts her head and gazes out into the sky. Her new room has the perfect view of the landscape._

_Mikan stands up and walks toward her gigantic floor-to-ceiling window. Her eyes are sad and watery. As she gazes out into the sky, two stars are shining brightly in the distance._

_One star is bigger than the other; the other star is small, but just as bright as the bigger star._

_But they are not close together, but very far apart._

_Very, very far apart._

_Suddenly, the big star disappears. Mikan searches relentlessly for it in the night sky, but it is no where to be found._

_The little star, still trying to shine brightly, is now all alone._

_All alone._

"_Natsume… where are you? Are you alive?" Mikan whispers, as she presses her hands on the window glass and weeps._

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_Chapter End._

_Ah, is it confusing you? Yes? Yes? That's what I hoped, but I hope some readers caught the obvious symbolism in the previous passage. Why did I use present tense in the previous passage, rather than past tense as I usually do in my regular chapters? Why did I italicize the previous passage?_

_Well, that's because I'm writing about the present, what Mikan is doing right now! I'm not giving anything away. But keep in mind, this will have a HAPPY ENDING, to make up for all the sadness in this story. But that's a lot of sadness. But Mikan's not called the Unlucky Girl for nothing. Readers who are still confused, read Chapter One again. The beginning part, where Mikan is writing/speaking. That's in present tense, is it not? That passage was just like the one just above._

_I will update one more chapter of this, and then I'll finally get back to __Popular Reject__! Woohoo! Here I come, Double H! (Read Popular Reject to understand what that means)_

_The ultimate Luna and Mikan battle! Well… XD I feel bad about advertising my other fanfiction here, but blah. I'm excited about updating that one again! I have everything all set out!_

_As usual, my little messages: I'm not going to update __Popular Reject__ next; I will update another chapter of __Unlucky Girl__ before. Because I want __Unlucky Girl__ to finish first, I don't want two fanfictions ending at the same time. So I want to go ahead with this one. So, spread the word to __Popular Reject__ readers, please! And if you are one, please understand what I'm thinking._

_Special thanks to my beta-reader: xSTICKYxNOTEx_

_Please write a review if you want to support this story and keep it running. If you want to know when the next chapter will be up, please add a story alert on this fanfiction. My goal is to update this fanfiction every two weeks (OR SO!)._

_If you want to become my friend, just send me a message, and I'll definitely be glad. :)  
_  
_–Geena/Snowflaked Angel_

_Dun dun dun! _

_(xSTICKYxNOTEx walks in set, and starts writing)_

_**LETTER FROM THE EDITOR:**_

_Dear readers,_

_Ha, Snowflaked Angel set up my whole letter from the editor part here. She even wrote dear readers for me and wrote –write something-. I wonder if she's trying to tell me something… This is awkward I don't know what to say (laughs). _

_Uuhhh… (laughs) I'll have to practice this. Next chapter, I'll have a real letter, I promise! _

_Much love, XOXO, _

_- xSTICKYxNOTEx _


	9. Chapter 9: Forboding

**X . The Unlucky Girl . X**

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To Mikan Sakura, anything that concerns her is poisoned. Her mother and father separated and she lives in a poor house with her mother, who is getting sicker by the day. Her father doesn't care about them, now that he has his own new family with his new wife. In order to get more money, Mikan becomes a bar singer, which she keeps a secret from her family. Everything in Mikan's life is going wrong, but will something finally be right when she meets Natsume and Ruka?

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▬_**Previously:**_

_Mikan stands up and walks toward her gigantic floor-to-ceiling window. Her eyes are sad and watery. As she gazes out into the sky, two stars are shining brightly in the distance._

_One star is bigger than the other; the other star is small, but just as bright as the bigger star._

_But they are not close together, but very far apart._

_Very, very far apart._

_Suddenly, the big star disappears. Mikan searches relentlessly for it in the night sky, but it is no where to be found._

_The little star, still trying to shine brightly, is now all alone._

_All alone._

"_Natsume… where are you? Are you alive?" Mikan whispers, as she presses her hands on the window glass and weeps._

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▬_Chapter Nine: Foreboding ▬_

"You-chaaaaan!" Aoi flung her arms around Youichi's neck. "I haven't seen you in such a long time!"

Youichi hugged Aoi close. "I missed you."

Aoi noticed the sudden seriousness in the atmosphere. "You…chan?" She looked up at Youichi. "Are you okay?"

Youichi stared into his girlfriend's beautiful brown-slash-ruby-colored eyes and hugged her even tighter. "I won't let you go," he whispered.

"Y-You-chan?" Aoi asked while pulling away from him. "Sit, and talk."

Youichi and Aoi sat down on the stairs of the house. "What's wrong?" Aoi asked.

Youichi ran his fingers through his hair. "A lot of things have been happening lately… a lot of bad things. Everything involving Mikan Sakura."

Aoi looked surprised. "Mikan Sakura? Oh, I know her! She goes to my school."

Youichi twitched. "_What?_"

"She's so nice, and bubbly, and smart. I want to be just like her when I grow up. It's such a surprise that she's not popular though… but I heard a rumor that she's poor, but I fail to see the reason why that even matters!" Aoi continued without pause.

"Are you trying to tell me… that… you and _Mikan_ are _friends_?" Youichi's mouth dropped open.

"Well… I'm her best friend that's younger than her, if that's what you meant. I look up to her so much, and she's really the perfect role model for me," Aoi said dreamily. "When I met her at Natsume's party once, I nearly fainted. She didn't know me then, but I quickly became friends with her after that."

Youichi fought to find the right words. "Aoi… don't be friends with her. No, I _refuse_ for you to be friends with her!" he ended up shouting.

Aoi looked absolutely appalled. "Ex_cuse_ me, Youichi? When has it been _your_ job to regulate who I make friends with?" Aoi stood up angrily.

"No, I—I didn't mean—just, please, be friends with anybody except Mikan Sakura, Aoi," Youichi whispered. "_Please_."

"I'm confused Youichi. What problem do you have with Mikan?"

"_A LOT OF PROBLEMS!" _Youichi shouted. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm being selfish."

Aoi stared at Youichi. "Yes, you _are_."

"But Aoi, take my word for it. Mikan has caused all the problems of our family right now, and underneath the role model you look up to—though I absolutely have no idea why _she's_ your role model—she's a vicious animal that eats its own kind to survive. That's her true nature," Youichi told her. "Be careful. I'm telling you this because I _care_ for you, Aoi, not because I'm being selfish or jealous."

Aoi bit her lip. "You-chan… I, I wish I _could_ just stop being friends with her, because I care about your feelings too, but I can't. She's my _role model_! I can't just take your word for it and leave…"

"You have to, Aoi. Because you're my girlfriend, and you listen to me because I listen to you." Youichi's expression hardened.

"Hey, there, just because I'm your girlfriend, doesn't mean—" Aoi began.

"Then what _does_ it mean, Aoi? What does our relationship even _mean_ to you? Does it even mean anything? It's always _me_ coming to _you_." Youichi started descending the stairs. "You know what? Forget it."

"Youichi!" Aoi started after him, down the Hyuuga mansion.

"You can just keep being friends with Mikan Sakura, and we can have nothing to do with each other. It's perfect for you." Youichi banged open the door and rushed out. Aoi followed him, trying to keep up with his long, furious, strides.

"Youichi, _wait_! I love you, Youichi, of _course_ our relationship means the whole world to me!" Aoi yelled.

"Obviously it doesn't mean the 'world' to you! You mean _Mikan_ means the whole world to you!" Youichi shouted.

"Youichi, you're _jealous!_ I'm telling you, that's not it, it's just that Mikan is a very nice person, with a wonderful personality—" Aoi pushed past the front gate; Youichi was already on the sidewalk, walking away from the mansion. "Youichi, _wait!"_

Youichi laughed. "I get it. You don't need to enlighten me any further, _Aoi_…"

Aoi walked across the sidewalk, looking both ways while crossing, trying to catch up to Youichi, who finally stopped walking and was now facing her direction.

"…we're done."

Youichi's words rang in Aoi's ears, and time seemed to have stopped for her. Her body froze, and Aoi clutched her hands to her ears, as if trying to block out some kind of sound.

She kneeled down in the middle of the road, clutching her ears, burying her head into her lap.

Youichi watched all of this with confusion and horror, wondering what was happening to her…

None of them noticed the car that was flying down the road, heading straight for Aoi.

_BEEP BEEP! BEEEEP!_

The car honked its horn, but the car kept coming…

_SCREEECH!_

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"Where are the patient's family members?" The doctor demanded again.

Youichi pleaded, "None of them are here, I was with her, I'm her boyfriend!"

The doctor scrutinized Youichi's face before saying, "Fine. I'll be back very soon, young man."

Youichi pushed past the doctor and went into the room. Aoi was laying there, her eyes closed tightly shut. Looking at her closely, Youichi noticed she was shivering.

"What's wrong with her, doctor?" Youichi said, a little hysterically. "Doctor?"

Oh, the doctor was gone.

Youichi stepped closer to her. "Aoi?" he whispered. Youichi was afraid; afraid of touching her. It was silly, really—but Youichi was afraid of Aoi's reaction.

Her reaction to getting hit by a car and ending up in the hospital because of him.

It was frightening to see Aoi right now. She was all bandaged up like a mummy. Youichi remembered the time he took her to the museum… Aoi was scared of mummies. That day, she proclaimed for him to be her knight of shining armor. To save her from mummies attacking her at night.

Youichi had declared her to be utterly stupid.

Youichi sighed and turned to look at Aoi's sleeping face again, but to his alarm, her ruby eyes were open.

Open, but vacant.

"A…oi?" Youichi whispered again, holding her hand.

Aoi's eyelashes fluttered a bit. Then, she spoke.

"Excuse me… where am I? The hospital?"

Youichi found out that he had been holding his breath. "You're at the hospital, Aoi. But you're okay, now, you'll be fine." He squeezed her cold hand.

"Okay." Aoi looked a little confused, but she smiled a bit. She looked at her hand, which was in Youichi's.

"Is it bothering you? Do you want to sleep?" Youichi asked worriedly, letting go of her hand.

"Um, not really," Aoi replied. She looked around the room. "Actually…"

The door flung open with a bang, then somebody yelled, "YOUICHI, YOU BASTARD!"

Youichi felt himself being lifted off the ground again. He looked into the furious eyes of Natsume Hyuuga again. Stuff like this seemed to be happening to him all the time now.

Natsume looked like he was going to stab Youichi, but decided against it and dropped Youichi to the ground.

Mr. Hyuuga and Mrs. Hyuuga burst in shortly after; their faces were white with shock. If it was possible, their faces paled even more when they saw Aoi on the hospital bed.

"Aoi!" Mrs. Hyuuga flung her arms around her daughter's body. "Are you alright?"

Aoi blinked. "Father!" Aoi looked above her mother and her mouth parted open at the sight of her father. "Mother!"

Aoi looked at Natsume. "Who—oh, Natsume-nii!"

Natsume's eyes bulged a bit. _Aoi almost forgot who the fuck he was_.

"Dad… umm…" Aoi looked at Youichi uncertainly. She beckoned her father over and whispered something in his ear.

Mr. Hyuuga's expression hardened as he regarded Youichi coldly. "It's alright, Aoi-bear, just go to sleep and don't worry."

Aoi nodded before casting another look at Youichi.

They all filed out of Aoi's room, into the hallway. Mr. Hyuuga closed the door firmly before slowly turning to Youichi.

"My daughter luckily did not get hit by the car severely. Most of it is mental trauma. She seems to have forgotten about you. Doesn't look like amnesia—she remembers all of us. I spoke to the doctor before coming in; he thinks she has a mental problem." Mr. Hyuuga paused, and then continued, "Apparently, he overestimated her situation, and he predicted that she would be traumatized by the very sight of you, but it seems that she has forgotten you completely."

"A good thing," Natsume muttered.

Youichi's mouth was open. Everything happened so quickly…

Wait, Aoi forgot about him?

Was Mr. Hyuuga serious?

What the hell?

**X**** --********-- ********--**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

I've already finished singing for the night. I was the first to sing, and I still had time to talk with Natsume afterwards. Natsume seemed really out of it today. Ruka barely comes anymore. I wonder if he's mad at me, about the Hotaru and Youichi thing.

Natsume and I didn't talk for a couple of minutes, just sipping our drinks—me, with Coke. We pretended to watch the dancers sashaying around.

I side-glanced at Natsume, who was staring at me. I turned to face him full-on. "Would you care to tell me what happened?"

"My sister… got hit by a car."

My eyes widened. "Is she… okay? Your sister is Aoi, right?"

"I should've guessed that you knew her… when she's all alone, she spends her time saying 'Mikan, Mikan, Mikan' and 'I get it, I get it, I get it, we're done, we're done', and stuff like that. It's really scaring me." Natsume buried his head in his hands.

I was absolutely appalled. "Is her brain damaged? Does she not remember anything?"

"She remembers everybody. I'm pretty sure she remembers you too. She just…" Natsume growled under his breath, "doesn't remember _Youichi_."

I just sat there, not really sure what to think. "Youichi's her boyfriend, right?"

Natsume scoffed. "Tch. He _was_."

I put my hand on his shoulder softly. "Hope she gets better."

"She's fine like this, really. I don't know why I'm disturbed."

"Perhaps it's because she doesn't remember a large part of her memories?" I said softly. "The part that Youichi takes over?"

"That bastard. It's better this way." Natsume turned away from Mikan.

"You know the truth," I said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Natsume looked at his phone.

**1 TEXT MSG**

It was Ruka. Natsume showed the text message to me.

**RUKA: **come to the apt. bring mikan. urgent

We silently got up and paid for our drinks. I wondered what Ruka wanted. Was it something about Hotaru?

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"Natsume. Mikan." Ruka nodded, giving me a small, but genuine smile.

"Is everything okay? What's going on?" I asked.

Then, I saw the familiar blur of silver-hair.

"Youichi…"

He looked way different from the images implanted in my head of him. He was usually angry, uncontrollable, and vicious.

The boy standing up looked very different. His hair flopped down, around the sides of his face. The silver-hair lost the prideful shine. His usually blazing eyes were dull and wary. I noticed he kept fidgeting with his shirt; his eyes darted everywhere, as if uncertain what to look at.

"_Ruka. _WHAT THE HELL?" Natsume suddenly roared.

"Natsume, can you calm down for a minute? Youichi needs our help. You need to listen," Ruka said.

"I don't fucking need to listen!" Natsume retorted. I felt like he was going to go on another cussing spree.

I looked at Youichi. He looked even smaller and forlorn than he was the last time I looked at him.

"You _almost killed—_"

"Natsume."

Natsume seemed surprised that it was _me_ who spoke.

"You. Talk." I pointed at Youichi. "I'm fed up of you guys hollering at each other, and at me."

Ruka sighed in relief and ran his fingers through his blonde hair. "Thanks, Mikan, sweet."

I blushed a bit, but nodded.

Youichi seemed sort of lost for words. He cleared his throat a couple of times before saying, "I'm sorry."

We all looked at him intently. My gaze, I admit, wasn't very sympathetic, but it was better than Natsume's murderous glare.

"Ruka, Hotaru, and I…" Youichi's eyes darted towards Ruka, then flashed back to the ground, "were thinking of finding ways to get Aoi…"

Youichi swallowed.

"Go on, Youichi," Ruka urged.

"To… to get Aoi… to…" Youichi swallowed. "To… _to remember me again!_"

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_**Dear Diary,**_

_**I don't feel like writing the whole story, but basically, tonight was hectic. And shocking and confusing. It's like I saw another side of Youichi Sakura. It's freaky.**_

_**FREAKY! FREAKY! FREAKY!**_

_**Yeah… **_

_**I don't know what came over me, but I agreed to help. Natsume gave me a weird look, but I don't even know what's going on myself… still, it wouldn't hurt to help, right? I mean, Aoi, even if her boyfriend IS Youichi Sakura, or was him…**_

_**Ugh, I'm confused. To hell to this, I need my sleep.**_

_**-MA**_

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The plans were set. Everything was in position. We were ready to roll.

Project AOI's purpose was to get Aoi to remember Youichi.

It seemed pretty simple to me. Just stick Youichi's face in front of her and make him say a little secret that only the two of them know, and BAM. Cue the mushy movie ending songs.

I admit, this was going to be pretty fun.

However… Youichi. I would be lying if I said that I didn't have anymore hard feelings against him, and I would also be lying if I said that I still hated his guts.

I'm in the in-between, perhaps? Thing's have become so confusing. Do I hate him, or what?

Next, Hotaru. My feelings toward her? The usual—jealousy and anger. I tried to feel sorry for her, or even feel guilty, but I just can't. Sorry, Mom. I just can't. Natsume's mine! Why is that wrong? It's not wrong! Why did I even question myself?

I looked out the bus window. All of us—Natsume, Ruka, Hotaru, and I—were sitting on a private bus. Aoi remembered everybody except for Youichi. She was still a bit confused about Ruka and Hotaru, forgetting at times that Ruka was Natsume's best friend and things like that, but overall, she _does_ remember them.

The scenery outside was beautiful. Green hills rolled past me, and trees. So many trees. It was going to be perfect.

"Mikan… where are we going?" Aoi asked.

I sighed. Aoi already asked me that three times already. Apparently, she had forgotten—again.

"Aoi, we're going to an amusement park. Do you remember going to one?" I asked her gently, forcing a smile.

Of course, I already knew the answer. I was like a robot, repeating my answers to her questions.

"No… but…" Aoi stammered.

_But?_ This was a new response. I leaned closer, and so did Natsume.

"But what, Aoi?" Natsume asked.

Aoi looked confused. "I remember going on a rollercoaster… those are in amusement parks, right? Oh yeah, they are."

Natsume and I exchanged hopeful looks. Okay, Natsume's was more of an amused eyebrow raise, but still. It looked quite hopeful to me.

"Aoi—"

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

"It's time." Ruka checked his watch. "Driver! Stop the bus please!"

The private driver looked annoyed as he stopped and opened the doors.

Mikan and Hotaru walked with Aoi out of the bus. Aoi looked around. "Is this the amusement park? It looks like a park."

"Yes, this is a park, Aoi," Hotaru replied calmly. "Let's go back on again."

"Eh? Um… okay…?" Aoi crinkled her eyebrows.

Just as the bus doors were about to close, they heard the noise they've been waiting for.

"AOI!"

Aoi turned around in surprise, but the doors were already closed. She peered through the glass and saw Youichi.

**X**** --********-- ********--**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --**** --**** -- -- -- --**** --**** --**X

I saw the most unfamiliar boy waving at me while running to catch up to the bus. Suddenly, I felt the bus lurch forward, and the boy started going farther and farther away.

"Slower," somebody hissed to the driver. I didn't understand why they would want to go slower, and not to just stop and get the boy on, but I wasn't bothered by it.

I watched the boy run… his silver-hair flew around all over the place—

_Pain. Agonizing pain. _

I never experienced hell before, but I was sure that no pain could be worse than this. I heard myself utter a high-pitched scream. Then, I felt everybody's hands around me. My vision became blurred—from the tears? Wait, I was crying? My arms flailed out in spasms, and I didn't even try to keep my body in-check. I was hurting too much to care. I immediately forgot about the silver-haired boy and focused on nothingness. Trying to myself back into control.

But…

Still. It hurt. Very much.

Pain.

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"Mom? Yeah, it's me, Mikan." I was talking to Mom on my newly bought cell-phone, courtesy of Natsume.

"_You'll need it."_

"_Why?" I asked._

"_Because, I want to be able to talk to you anywhere, anytime."_

"_Natsume…"_

I shook my head. Now wasn't the time to think about such things.

"Is everything alright?" Mom asked on the other line.

"Yes, but I just wanted to tell you that I'm at the hospital right now."

"Who got hurt?"

"Aoi, Natsume's sister."

"What happened? Is she alright?"

"I'm not quite sure…" I closed my eyes, remembering today's horrifying events.

"Mi—"

"I'll talk to you later, Mom, I'm sorry, I'll explain everything soon."

There was a few seconds pause before Mom continued. "Alright, Mikan. I love you."

"I love you too, Mom. Bye."

_-Click-_

I sighed and leaned back on the cold hospital chair. Today was a total failure. Failure beyond words.

Upon seeing Youichi, Aoi seemed fine for about twenty seconds. We let her stare at Youichi as much as she wanted, seeing how she was so interested. I honestly thought that everything had clicked into place and that she remembered everything.

We all relaxed and backed away from Aoi. Mission success, I thought. Oh, how wrong I was.

Almost immediately after I thought that, Aoi suddenly clutched her head and started swaying. Everyone's eyes widened with horror as she grabbed the rail for support, but then attempted to bang her head against the wall. Luckily, Hotaru was there to stop her.

She screamed in agony, and at that second, I felt so guilty. So guilty. Aoi was in pain, and our plan made her suffer. It was horrible. We were the murderers of her happiness. I hated that.

We all rushed to her, trying to comfort her, but she kept on kicking and flailing like a wild animal. After a long time of struggling and kicking, her lights suddenly went out. The battery was dead. Like a marionette whose strings were cut.

Limp.

Dead…?

No!

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"She's alright." Natsume sighed. "Just suffered a lot of mental pain… the doctor said that we were lucky that she didn't cause any physical damage to herself."

"Mikan… Aoi's not dead. You know that, right?" Ruka asked me, putting a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"I know she's not _dead_, but… it feels like she's dead in the figurative sense." I sniffed. I glanced at Youichi, who was sitting in his sit with his hands clasped over his head which drooped down to his lap. It was a depressing sight.

Hotaru went home because she claimed that Miyuki would be suspicious if both of them didn't come home. Youichi was the party animal, she said, so it was alright.

I couldn't help but notice how Natsume's eyes shined with gratitude when he said good-bye to Hotaru. I wanted to slap myself. I was glad that Hotaru prevented Aoi from smashing her head! Of course I was!

I was just being a jealous bitch…

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_Awww, F-/-. What, I haven't updated for like, almost two months or something? Not to mention, this chapter is FREAKING short? I'm so sorry. But… it's Valentine's Day coming up. And guess who got a boyfriend three weeks ago…? :D_

_Yush, Snowflaked Angel is deeply and madly in love. He is so sweet. But before I go all gaga over something irrelevant to this story, I must say, have a happy Valentine's Day, everybody! Mend broken hearts, fall in love, and give gifts and receive gifts! Honestly... -will not go all gaga-  
_

_I love you all. Ah, it's the GARC. I really don't deserve any awards… count it as my punishment for updating so late! But may the best Fanfiction win. Thank you very much. Over and out._

_Answer to a plausible question: **Why did I make this chapter so DAMN short?**_

_Answer:_

**_- Because, I sensed killing intent out there if I didn't update quickly.  
_**

**_- Because, I really want to start Popular Reject._**

**_- Because, I can't think of anything else._**

**_- Because, I felt like it._**

**_- Because, better early than long…? (Lame answer/excuse)_**

_-Geena/Snowflaked Angel_

_**EDITOR'S NOTE:**_

_Hi guys, it's xSTICKYxNOTEx! I feel a little threatened, so I'm leaving my editor's note. I feel the love in the threat though, so it's ok. I love you, Geena! _

_So, hopefully no one reading this is a fan of mine. If you are, I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I've been pretty much dead update-wise. But I'm in the thick of a massive writer's block. I'm trying to break out, I really am, but I'm stuck. But maybe if I'm lucky, no one here knows me. _

_Much love, especially on Valentine's Day,_

_~StickyxNote_


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